"Borrowed Time" is the fourth EP in a career of 37 years by ALTARED STATES, a Heavy/Speed/Thrash Metal band from Wheeling, West Virginia, USA.  They are consistent though, as the first one was released in 2020, and they give us new material every two years. Now, in 2026, they are giving us another 21 minutes of their brand of Metal, and what immediately draws my attention is the very low sound that is coming through my speakers. it sounds as if the studio people knew how to use the bass part of the mixing table, and only just found the middle tones. Hopefully they will be able to find the buttons that control the treble parts soon as well, as the end product is okay to listen to, but could have been a whole lot better with a decent sound. I expected a much more from a band with such a long history.

Well, I say long history, what I should have said with such a lot of experience. ALTARED STATES was actually formed in 1989, only to be disbanded in 1990. The made their return in 2019, and have been around ever since. On "Borrowed Time" they give us the time to embrace 5 songs, and after having listened a few times, I have to say that my favourite has to be the title song "Borrowed Time", as the influences and peerage really shines through on this one. This is a combination of SLAYER riffing with BLITZKRIEG music. The vocals are fulfilling the quest. And the latter band is the one peer that pops up in  just about every song, mainly due to the vocals. Not only the sound, but also in the way the vocals are filled in will remind you of that band throughout the whole EP.

I have enjoyed listening to what ALTARED STATES is bringing on "Borrowed Time", but there is no spark flying across, making me eager to explore and find more. It's all just a bit too predictable, too often you realise that you've heard this before. And even though I find the production of "Borrowed Time" below par, if you like bands like TROUBLE, you still might like this one. Just listen to "Among The Shadows" up and until when it becomes a more punk orientated song. There is no bad music on this ALTARED STATES EP, but I feel that "Borrowed Time" is just too average to stand out.