SOUL DRAGGER is an Heavy/Thrash band from Rome. Their self titled album,"Soul Dragger," isn't a horrible but it doesn't excite me all that much. The talent is there but the execution is what throws me off and really keeps me from enjoying this more.  Despite their own facebook page labeling them as Heavy/Thrash, I would not say that is quite right.  While there is definitely the element of Thrash throughout the tracks, this album actually has a huge Metalcore sound.  In fact, I think the timing is what leaves this album misplaced.  If this was released during the hey day of Metalcore in the early to mid 2000's, I think it would be better received by me. SOUL DRAGGER is band, and album, that would be right at home alongside seminal releases from SHADOWS FALL, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, LAMB OF GOD, and GOD FORBID.  If I were still in my early 20's, I would be all over this album and my review would read very differently.  But as I have matured, so have my tastes and I just need more from my Metal bands now.  Like I said earlier, I don't find this album to be bad...just average and dated.

The opening track, "Rise," opens with rumbling drums, a tight rhythm section and decent lead work.  The song moves along well enough but I've heard all this before in my more formative years of discovering music.  Vocally, there is a lot of variety but the cleans aren't as good as the low end growls that pop up on occasion.  The song isn't help by its length either—six and a half minutes is a bit much for this style of song.  The album itself has an issue with length; it has eleven tracks with over an hour of run time.  Quite simply, that is a hard pill to swallow-outside of Prog and Funeral Doom, most albums don't need to be over an hour.

"Angel," is more of a Thrash song in places and one of the better songs presented.  The drumming is focused and right, as are the vocals and guitar.  But the chorus comes in and kills the songs atmosphere rather quickly. The band's potential for instrumental prowess is displayed on "Before Chaos." Without vocals to break down the atmosphere, the band shines as they combine modern Metal with Thrash sensibilities.  This is by far the best track on the album, everything just came together for this song. Unfortunately, the album is front loaded.  After "Before Chaos," everything just falls apart.  "War Nightmare," and "Soul Dragger," lean more towards filler with neither track presenting anything that stands out.

"Dean 'n' Destruction," is serviceable for the first four minutes or so but then, as is so common on this release, it wears out its welcome but running too far for too long.  However, the guitar melodies throughout the track were very well done as were the drums and solos. It seems the last track, "Collapse," was placed at the end to send the album off on an epic finish.   However, it doesn't really have a sense of grandiose urgency nor does it present any major shifts..at nearly nine minutes in length, it just sounds like a super long version of any of the album's previous tracks. Fans just getting into Metal or maybe the younger crowd will probably enjoy this more than I did.  But as a 36 year old Metalhead who listens to hundreds of bands, and who constantly discovers, listens, and reviews new ones every week, I just need more from a band for them to stand out.