ALL AGAINST hailing from Lisbon, Portugal, were formed in 2015. The Thrash and Groove Metal outfit released two EPs, one live album, and now their third full-length album. “Straight Down To Hell” has a length of more than 39 minutes, and it was released via Portuguese label Ragingplanet Records, which has many Death, Black, and Stoner Metal bands among their current roster. The album starts with the title track and with a spoken-word intro accompanied by the guitars. It slowly transitions into a tension-building track where more and more instruments join in: a violin, the drums, the backing vocals. It takes around four minutes for “Straight Down To Hell” to start with powerful guitar riffing, double-bass drumming, and harsh vocals. The track remains a slow song with dark and melancholic melodies. The vocals are two-parted: growls around the medium end of the guttural range alternate with clean vocals. The highlight of the track is the contributing lead guitar solo after around seven minutes. A few parts of the track include orchestral arrangements with the strings. It is unusual to start the album with a ballad of around nine minutes playing time, however, “Straight Down To Hell” is a very strong song. “Inner Mayhem” starts with thunderous guitar riffing accompanied by the lead guitars at measured tempo. The song transitions quickly into fast verse parts with punishing Thrash Metal riffing and deep-lying growls. The chorus parts and the bridges are played at a measured tempo, while the choruses have plenty of grooves with higher pitched harsh vocals and a lot of double-bass drumming. The break for the lead guitar solo is a fast one and the solo itself has a few classical vibes. “Inner Mayhem” was released as video, and the YouTube link is provided below.

“Nacao Valente E Imor(t)al“ is a mid-tempo track with direct and aggressive Thrash Metal riffing during the verse parts. The melodic framework is catchy in particular during the choruses. There are a few switches in tempo and rhythm, most prominent after the lead guitar solo, where the track concludes with a frantic Thrash Metal part with flesh-ripping guitar riffs. While the first opening tracks lacked a bit pace and aggression, this is clearly not the case with “Narrow Streets Of Disgrace”. It is one of the fastest album tracks driven by the traditional Thrash Metal riffing and the relentless drumming. The vocals are again a bit two-parted with a combination of growls during the verse parts and clean vocals and backing vocals during the chorus parts. “Narrow Streets Of Disgrace” is played at crazy pace from the first to the last note, and it is one of my favourite album tracks. “Nepotism” continues with the pace and aggression of the previous track. The guitar riffing is punishing, and the basslines are crushing. Verse and chorus parts have a seamless transition and are played at the same pace. The break for the lead guitar solo starts at a measured tempo and with catchy melodies, but it does not take long to raise the pace during the solo and finish the track at insane speed. Once again, the highlight of the track is the lead guitar solo.

“Out Of The Box” continues with the Thrash Metal assault at blistering pace. The guitar riffing is tight and aggressive. The vocals are a mixture of higher-pitched harsh vocals and deeper-lying growls. The track has one pace during the first verse and chorus parts, and also during the first part of the break for the lead guitar solo. While the lead guitar solo is played at insane tempo, there is an abrupt change towards a down-tempo part with thunderous guitar riffs and growling vocals until the end of the track. “Professional Haters” starts with a guitar-driven intro at a measured tempo, introducing the main riff of the song. The verse part is at mid-tempo with aggressive guitar riffing and the deep-lying growls. A short, double-bass driven bridge slows down the tempo for a short period, while the verse parts go back to a fast pace. The vocals during the choruses are clean with higher-pitched notes. The break with the extended lead guitar solo is the highlight of the track. The album closes with the fast “Upside Down Humanity”. It is a melodic Thrash Metal track at high pace, tight guitar riffing and catchy melodies, especially during the chorus parts. The vocals are once again split into verse growls and higher pitched harsh chorus vocals. The choruses include plenty of grooves once more. There are a few twists and turns in tempo and rhythm with a slower part introducing the lead guitar solo at high pace. The solo has again a few classical vibes. “Upside Down Humanity” is a good track to end the album.

ALL AGAINST release a very multi-faceted album. “Straight Down To Hell” contains many different elements and picks and chooses from several Metal subgenres. The base of the album is a modern Thrash Metal approach with pace and aggression in the guitar riffing and melodic lead guitar solos. The vocals introduce plenty of grooves in many songs and they are very versatile ranging from Death Metal growls to traditional Groove Metal vocals. Take all that and ALL AGAINST create their very own and charismatic Metal sound. The album is well produced. “Straight Down To Hell” is not a traditional mainstream Thrash Metal album and it was never meant to be, however, Thrash and Groove Metal fans will surely like what they hear.