Europe's eighth least populous country, with a population of 524,853 folks, is a tiny land locked country called Luxembourg, which is where Thrash Metal upstarts SCARLET ANGER hail from. The band began life in the year 2007, and by vocalist Joe Block and guitarist Fred Molitor, and they released a demo entitled " La Realidad Es Triste..." in the year 2009 and followed it with an EP called, "Kill The King" in 2011. Their first full length debut effort called "Dark Reign", saw the light of day in the year 2012 and in the year 2016 they released their second full length album, "Freak Show". In the year 2011, the band participated in the prestigious Wacken Metal Battle and won praise for their performance, as well as the Netrock Contest Luxembourg, which they won out of 30 local bands and which cemented them as a firm crowd favorite in the local scene. The band takes inspiration and is influenced by the usual suspects of Thrash Metal  genre like SLAYER, METALLICA, KREATOR, ANNIHILATOR, DESTRUCTION ,SODOM, among others.

The album opens with "Awakening Of The Elder Gods", which starts of a bit sluggishly before a chugging riff kick starts the melody. The song is reminiscent and has influences of "Arise" and is escorted by a blinding lead guitar solo and deep cavernous, guttural lead vocals. A regulation Thrash Metal song and clocking just over 5 minutes, has nothing new to offer except for a superlative lead guitar solo. A disappointing start to an album that I had hoped promised more.

"Welcome to the freak show" seemed to me to be influenced by the way MEGADETH plied their brand of Speed Metal. Although the faster bridge reminded me of KREATOR, and the songs that Mille wrote and perfected. The song boasts of a rapid lead guitar solo and slower twin guitar harmonies. I also thought I heard a hint of "Blackened" in the way the song progresses. "Through The eyes Of the Sufferer", begins with a fast riff before settling into a decidedly easy tempo, which the band is comfortable with. The lead vocals are reduced to a scream during the bridge and the chorus bit of the song. A powerful lead solo and a twin guitar attack midway through the track is rather easy on the ears. The tempo picks up during the latter half but does little to salvage this average track.

The album closes out with "Deadly Red Riding Hood", an up-tempo track that begins with twin guitar melodies, backed by an interesting riff, before the rest of the instruments catch up to create a tapestry of Thrash. The lead vocals stray all over the place during this track and the song can only be described as Thrash Metal for the new generation. It has oddly timed bits, weird clean/whispering vocals and heavy power chords blanket the entire track.

As a fan of Thrash Metal from its heydays in the early 80's to the early 90's, I genuinely thought that this "new-Thrash" would live up to the bar that was set by their predecessors. Unfortunately, what we get in this album is tepid, with repetitive melodies, and it can be disappointing. Although there is no doubt that the band has some killer ideas for melody and song structure, it hardly translates into something that will grab the attention of the listener. The production is right on the mark and the musicianship competent. There is room for improvement in the pronunciation, as I found it lacking in certain places. On the plus side, I was quite impressed by the album artwork and I thought it was quite interesting.<