Some really good heavy/thrash metal by these Germans, lead by Destruction's front-man Schmier on bass vocals. This album is some kick ass music! I didn't give it much quarter the first few times I heard it. It was by the time I started hearing it on headphones that did me justice. Guitars are slow (except the leads) really groove-laden, most songs are laid back and the sound is their own. They're not duplicating what other bands have done in the heavy metal/thrash metal genres. They just wrote what the wanted and what sounded good to them. To be exact, they mesh the Destruction thrash guitar tone with this hardcore blues feel to them. It's about a little less than an hour of good metal.

I felt that because the leads were good as were the rhythms, this album deserved a "B" rating. There isn't a song on here that I dislike. The music and vocals are what grabbed me the most. Everything seemed to fit and it wasn't overly aggressive. The vibe from this one was good, a lot of keen rhythms in the music that flowed. It really does sound better listening to it on headphones. You can get the full feel to it, Schmier isn't as aggressive as he is in Destruction, more laid back. I'm not big into the lyrics, but the music is great. I thought that everything was played with meaning and vengeance. A "war-machine" album with total soul to it. They didn't back down, they put heart into it.

The production/mixing was awesome. I don't think they could've done a better job even though as I mentioned I was able to capture more listening to it on headphones. A slight echo to some of the leads but mostly it was just hit-home metal to the core. Definitely deserves more praise than it's gotten by the metal community. I think that the whole trio made this into one kick ass listen to. These guys are definitely keyed into knowing how to make good music. I don't doubt that they'll continue on this metal quest for years to come. One thing to note here is that they don't seem to overuse technology they (I'm sure) are a band that would be able to pull off a kick ass live show!

To compare to other metal bands, they just sound mostly like their own vibe/feel. I don't want to compare because then it'd be like putting them into a different category where they belong in their own sound. So I'd just say listen to them on YouTube and you'll get a feel of what they're like. I'd just say they're in their own zone and the music is what grabbed me the most. I think that the rhythm guitar really has a neat kind of way it's thrown out there. A lot of leads too that were carefully constructed and fit in with the music well. I really think that Panzer is totally into their own way of doing things in the songwriting category. They use a lot of lead guitar feel to back up the rhythms.

In conclusion, I'd say the music is too good to be average. I think that they did an awesome job of writing to this album. They play good heavy/thrash metal that deserves to be shared throughout the metal community. Not average, better than average. Their musicianship is what makes this band more listenable than a lot of metal bands that are putting out nowadays. They are metal to the core and unique in their own sound. They're never dying, they have heart in what goes into their songs, and music that's just a product of all of that. I'd say first listen on YouTube, then make your own decision if it's right for you, get the album. But I would say take my word for it and get the album!

Rating: 8½ (out of 10) ratings explained

Reviewed by Death8699
10/06/2015 12:13