AT SACRAMENT is a newly formed Thrash Metal band out of Ciudad del Este, Paraguay. On July 16, 2020 they released their debut EP, "A New Dawn." Not sure if it's the heat, the messed up socio-economic issues, or something in the water but as I have noted in several of my reviews, South America is a hotbed of incredible Thrash Metal. That AT SACRAMENT has debuted with such a strong EP just six months into the game isn't all that surprising considering their stomping ground is the second largest metropolis in Paraguay.

"A New Dawn" is a finely produced Thrash Metal artifact. The songwriting is deliberate and patient without over the top flourishes or flagrant rip offs of those that came before. Both Nicolas Peralta and Fabian Gimenez trade off rhythm and lead duties with impressive finesse and grit; Wilson Paniagua lays in thick, saturated bass lines; and Renato Zandonai backs up the rhythm section with a performance that is both urgent and balanced. Alexis Martinez is the consummate Thrash frontman with aggressive but articulate vocals that sound like he could take the Stella shouting contest any day.

The EP is just under 20 minutes long, including a short atmospheric intro featuring Gregorian chants, doomy percussion, and haunting synths. It's the type of intro you might expect to lead into a German Goth Metal album except for the fact that it doesn't. The following 18 minutes are relentless metal coupled with lyrics ranting about social ills and I'm guessing poisoned politics. I mean it is Thrash.

AT SACRAMENT are at their best when they are stomping out mosh-fevered numbers like "Corrupted Mind," which will induce much flinging of elbows and knees and much banging of heads and fists. The groove-infused title track, "A New Dawn," is also pretty damned awesome as is the longest track, "Visions Of Madness," which invokes more Doom essence with its Sabbathesque clanging of bells and foreboding thunderstorm.

So less then a year out of the gates, knee deep in a pandemic, and surrounded by loads of serious competition, AT SACRAMENT has their work cut out for them. If they can follow through with the trajectory "A New Dawn" plots out, I think we'll be hearing a lot more from them. If you're looking to get in on the ground floor of some seriously good Thrash, this is your chance.