Head On Collision
Ritual Sacrifice
7.5
As fashionable as thrash metal might have been just two years ago, when it was still cool to like Municipal Waste and the genre wasn't entirely flooded with revivalist bands that didn't like to be called exactly what they were, it feels as though the wave is on a noticeable decline. People, myself included, have heard enough takes on Kill 'Em All by now. The attitude has become, "If you've heard one, you've heard 'em all." I can't say I entirely disagree with that notion. However, there are a few exceptions. With Ritual Sacrifice, Missouri's Head On Collision is one of those exceptions.
Far more visceral than many of their thrash counterparts, Head On Collision are more late 80s Slayer than they are '83 Metallica. After becoming almost entirely disinterested in hearing another speed metal clone, I can appreciate this meatier, more dynamic approach. To be honest, as much as I love Kill 'Em All, Bonded By Blood and Show No Mercy, I was really hoping one of these younger bands would at least pay homage to Ride the Lightning or Reign in Blood, so to hear this coming from a band I was unfamiliar with up until this review is refreshing. Now, most songs still clock in at less than three and a half minutes but Head On Collision's punch, rotten attitude, blistering solos and well-developed instrumental intros work to give the band a personality often lacking in today's new crop of thrash acts.
Ritual Sacrifice is hardly groundbreaking. If any ground is to be broken, it's not going to happen in thrash metal. Metallica beat these guys to it 22 years ago. I don't think anyone pops in a thrash disc looking for a challenge, including myself. I want to hear kick-ass riffs, gravelly vocals, angry lyrics about societal ills and just the right amount of conviction. This young trio provides all four of those things, irony free and in under 40 minutes.
