Plague of Conscience [CD]

I wasn't previously familiar with the UK-based power/thrash band Savage Messiah, but when Earache offered a free download of their new album I figured it was worth a shot. As it turns out, Savage Messiah, which features former members of Shadow Keep and Headless Cross, is quite good, and they strike the perfect balance (for my tastes at least) between power and thrash metal.

Plague of Conscience is the band's third album, and it's very impressive overall. The band delivers plenty of crushing riffs and headbanging rhythms as well as just enough power and melody to keep things from becoming a total thrash-fest. It's more Annihilator or Sanctuary than say Warbringer or Toxic Holocaust. The vocals are surprisingly strong, and they're a good counterpart to the hard and heavy guitar work. Standout tracks are "Architects of Fear" and the title track, but the whole album is very solid.

If you're a fan of bands that walk the line between all-out riffage and power and melody (like Sanctuary, Imagika, Iced Earth, Vicious Rumors and Helstar), Savage Messiah is a band that's well worth checking out. I'd also recommend some lesser-known (but still excellent) power/thrash bands from the US such as Witches Mark, Ancient Creation, Seventh Calling and Core Device.

Savage messiah are a band coming out of england and plauge of conscience is there third release. I have to say i find this a step below there last release insurrection rising. Thats not to say this release is a poor piece of thrash metal its actually quite good but i would buy insurrection rising first if your new to the band. The music is a almost progressive thrash sound and its very well played but i must say i found that the guitars lacked some of the bite of there last album because of the production. And while the vocalist is very good i also found the vocals better and more varied on there last release. And i found less songs that stood out to me this time around. But the ones that did were some of the best thrash released this year such as six feet under the gun,carnival of souls,in thought alone,beyond a shadow of a doubt,shadowbound and the mask of anarchy. Savage messiah are still one of my favorite newer bands and this is quality thrash.

I discovered these guys only a couple of months ago, not even actually. I was doing a wikipedia search for 2012 in heavy metal, and this album was on the list. I thought, "Huh, Savage Messiah. Sounds like a cool name. I ought to check them out." I clicked on the link to their wiki page and saw them listed as a thrash metal band. I like thrash, I thought. I heard clips from their previous album Insurrection Rising, and imediately purchased that one. I also discoverred this one was leaked, so I had to download it, to tide me over until the actual release date. I now own it. I'll also add that in this short month and a half they've become one of my favorite thrash metal bands, of course not yet surpassing classics like Megadeth, Metallica, Testament, Anthrax, Overkill, but I'm REALLY liking all of their albums.

Savage Messiah is a thrash metal band from England. They released their first album, Spitting Venom, in 2007. So, while, they're a new discovery for me, they've been around for a while. This is a band, that based on their first 3, now, albums has changed slightly with every album. Well some changes haven't been so slight. But, they've also stayed true to their sound. A lot of bands find this hard to do, but these guys have succeeded so far.

To get the one complaint out of the way, the guitar sound on this album seems a little flat. It doesn't have that bite it had on Insurrection Rising. That's not to say the guitars sound bad, they have more of a Shadows Fall sound, but they're just missing something in some songs.

The guitar work on here is very solid though. There are plenty of nice riffs to be had, and some solid soloing.

The rhythm section fills in nicely, and the drummer does a nice job.

What really stands out is the vocals. Not only does the singer's vocals get more melodic, but his melodies have gotten so much better since Spitting Venom. I pretty much can't believe this is the same singer, but it is. And none of that should be a surprise as his vocals were solid on Insurrection Rising as well.

Overall with the guitar tones and the vocals, we have a much more melodic album than its predecessor. That's not to say it's a soft album, because it isn't, but it is more melodic.

Plague Of Conscience 9/10 fades in slowly, but starts the album off on a fast and heavy note. This one could benefit more from the guitar sound of Insurrection, but it's a very nice track. The singer uses a high pitched scream to help introduce the song. There's fast paced drums. The vocals are pretty melodic, with a nice chorus, and solid guitar riffs. Very solid opener.

Six Fet Under The Gun 9/10 is a slower, but still moves, metal song. There's another solid riff, wouldn't expect anything else from these guys. The drums are again solid, add a nice punch to the song. The vocals are solid again. There's a nice melody for the chorus.

Carnival Of Souls 8/10 starts with a clean intro, before a nice heavy and fast riff comes in. This one's a nice and heavy/fast thrasher. The first thing I think of when I see the title is "Kiss", who had an album of this name. Again we're treated to a nice guitar riff and solid rhythm section. The drums aren't quite frantic, but they're very nice. The melody isn't quite as good as the previous songs, but it's still decent.

In Thought Alone 9/10 is an up tempo ballad. The rhythm section is featured in the verses, with some clean guitar notes thrown in, and melodic vocals. The song gets heavier as we head towards the chorus. I LOVE the title of this song. Vocals are nice, as usual, and overall this is just a good performance by the band.

All Seeing I 10/10 is a faster thrashier song. And, I love this one. Nice riffs that build up to the verses. This song just moves. I love it. Again everyone does a great job on this one. Love the chorus. This song just has great energy, and pumps me up when I hear it. We're also treated to a nice solo. Yay.

Beyond A Shadow Of A Doubt 6/10 is an up tempo, maybe upper mid tempo rocker. The verses are very solid, and remind me a bit of early 90's Megadeth/Metallica/Testament/Anthrax. They're very solid. My complaint about this one is thelyrics in the chorus is a bit too repetitive, but the melody is still fun, and overall it doesn't hurt the song that much. It's definitely the weakest song on here, but it's still enjoyable.

Architects Of Fear 8/10 is another fast paced thrasher. The verses have a nice pace to them. The song slows a bit before the chorus, but picks up with the chorus. Nice melodies and guitars. As usual everyone does a nice job on here. I'm getting tired of typing nice vocals and solid guitars and good rhythm section, but I'm not tired of listening to it.

The Accuser 7/10 is yet another piece of thrash metal goodness. We get some furious riffing from the guitar players. The chorus doesn't quite do it for me as much, but ortunately the rest of the song holds everything together nicely.

Shadowbound 9/10 is a strong closing track. We get another up tempo metal song. Again everyone does a nice job on their instruments. The singer mixes in some more high pitched screams, semi Halford-esque, although not on that level. Still it's nice for him to incorporate the higher vocals more fully into a song. Adds some variety to the album.

Overall this is a more melodic step for Savage Messiah, and it does raise some concerns for me, about the direction they're going in. But, for now they're still a very solid thrash metal band, and this is a definite welcome addition to my music collection, and their discography. My only other minor complaint is it's too short, only 9 songs, same as Insurrection. But, if they only wanted to release their best work, and no filler, they did a solid job, and I could understand limiting the tracks.

If you're a thrash metal fan, do yourself a favor and get both this album and Insurrection Rising. You won't be disappointed. I wasn't.