What’s changed in the 2 years since “War of Will”?

There’s still all the thrashing mosh-ready craziness with the high pitch screams and death growls of main man Gumby. All the Slayer, Pantera, and Iron Maiden worship is still prominent and just as awesome.

I’ll reiterate my statement; When you hear Battlecross, you can envision 10,000 Viking looking motherfuckers destroying eachother, then proceeding to have a beer bash and drink gallons of Meade.

What’s prevalent in this album compared to the previous one, is that there’s a lot more fun in “Rise to Power”. There’s a punkier good time vibe throughout which makes sense if you’ve ever seen them live and talked to them. They’re just a bunch of good ol boys from Michigan who play heavy metal and like to party and have fun.

So while the album is still very fast and aggressive yet melodic, it’s not AS aggressive as they were. It doesn’t hurt them whatsoever. The guitarwork is phenomenal and exactly what it should be. The drums are very direct and done with perfection. Blastbeats in all the right places, slowing down when necessary, and always ready for those grooving moments.

Also as before, atleast in my opinion, is that there is no 1 standout track. Battlecross has no filler songs or dull moments or overly long songs. They come in, kick your dick in, shred, and move on. They have a winning formula. So it really only comes down to you either like them or you don’t, and my question is…

What’s not to like?

#Battlecross  #RiseToPower