MASS DECEPTION, coming from the Netherlands, return with their second full-length album, "Redemptions". I love an album that tells a story. The intro track, "Once Upon a Time in the Waste", made me feel as I was being thrust right into a Mad Max like wasteland. There is a deep atmospheric feel to the beginning of the album. I wasn't quite sure how I was going to feel about this album as "Final Fallout" started. I would say there is a far more melodic feel to this album rather than thrash that includes the vocals. But the guitar work is quite impressive. There is a beautiful guitar solo that is laid down in the track.

Even though the beginning of the album is quite deceptive, the thrash attack came in full force with "Hell on Earth" and "Masters of the Grid". Still keeping with the very atmospheric feel of the album, I found myself completely banging my head to these tracks. Again, there is some impressive guitar soloing complimenting the brutality of these tracks. I feel like I am being taken on this journey of mayhem in this album. "Death by Design", helps to paint that picture. From the recorded talking spinning a story line of being force fed medication, to the power metal like vocals, I love the feel of this track.

"Agenda 21" comes in completely swinging. I love how MASS DECEPTION makes me completely second guess myself. Just when I keep thinking I have the musical style figured out, they come out of left field with some more genre mixing. At first, I was thinking the band had a more melodic metal type feel to them, then I get completely hammered with some brutal thrash, and then this track comes in and has a southern metal type PANTERA feel to it. I love that this band is not afraid to throw everything together in a completely fluid melodic thrash type sound. It works very well. I am completely sold on the picture that this albums paints for my imagination. The intro track gave it a certain post-apocalyptic survival feel to it, then "For a Few Guilders More" comes in and spins a Western atmospheric feel. "The Gunslinger" comes in shooting, if you'll allow me a cowboy pun. This is just an incredibly well thought out track from a musicianship standpoint. There is some more beautiful guitar work done in the track. The ending of the album keeps with the atmospheric theme.

"Redemptions" is a very Western like sounding track. There are even atmospheric sounds of the wind in the background.  I love how the overall feel of this album just brings forth the imagination. It is some very good put together melodic thrash that makes you feel like you're actually stuck in the virtual wasteland. I love that MASS DECEPTION brought a tale of two story lines, in a sense, to this album. Their blending of these two different story lines and their fluid genre blending make "Redemptions" a definite listen.