DARKNESS were formed in 1084 and they are from Essen, Germany. The Thrash Metal band were active and then split several times, and they reformed in 2013. During their career, they released two EPs, five full-length albums, and one live album. Their sixth album “Blood On Canvas” was produced, mixed, and mastered by Cornelius Rambadt (DESTILLERY; SODOM) at Rambado Recording Studios. The album has a length of more than 43 minutes, and it was released via German Death, Black, and Power Metal specialists Massacre Records.

The album starts with a tension-building pre-lude to “Wake Up In A Rage”, which is an old school Thrash Metal track with tight and aggressive riffing at fast pace. The vocals are harsh and vary between the deep to medium end of the vocal range. There is background vocal support during the chorus parts and that adds an extra layer to the track. There is a short mid-tempo break leading to the very contributing lead guitar solo. The opening track is one for the pit and a promising start of the album. “A Couple Of Kills” starts with the drums and then the guitars join in with powerful riffing. It is a fast track, especially during the verse parts, while the tempo is slightly slower during the chorus parts. The verse parts are direct and aggressive, whereas the chorus parts are more on the melodic side of things. The basslines are crunching and very prominent, in particular during the break. Highlight of the track is the extended lead guitar solo. “Night In Turmoil” starts with an instrumental part with the guitars leading the charge. It is a mid-tempo track with slight changes in tempo and rhythm when it comes to the chorus part. The basslines are again very prominent throughout the track. The break provides another change in tempo and rhythm and this one is the fastest part of the track. While the verse and chorus parts of the song cannot really keep up with most of the album tracks, “Night In Turmoil” finishes strongly in terms of pace, aggression, and riffing.

“Human Flesh Wasted” starts with a short acoustic part transitioning into thunderous riffing and eventually in a fast verse part with classical Thrash Metal riffing and crushing basslines. There are hardly any tempo and rhythm changes between verse and chorus parts, it is a very direct track, but with focus on a dark melodic framework, which has some melancholic features during the chorus parts. As the lead guitar solo is again very contributing, “Human Flesh Wasted” is one of the album highlights. “This And My Heart Beside” is a powerful track at a measured tempo with a stomping rhythm during the first verse part. The first tempo switch to mid-tempo occurs right after the verse part for a transition towards fast pace. The parts at higher tempo are the more aggressive ones. “This And My Heart Beside” has a bit more complexity in the song structure as there are numerous twists in tempo and rhythm. “Trust Is A Whore” starts with powerful riffing and a lead guitar solo at mid-tempo with a head-banging rhythm leading into the verse part. Focus is put again more on the melodies. The vocals for the chorus parts are intensified by the background vocals, which take over to shout out the chorus vocal line. Altogether, “Trust Is A Whore” cannot keep up with most other album tracks.

“Defcon Four” is a traditional Thrash song at blistering pace with flesh-ripping guitar riffing, crunching basslines once again, and comes with lots of aggression and directness. The chorus vocal lines are again intensified by the background vocals and here it adds something extra. The break is kept relatively short and so is the lead guitar solo. “Defcon Four” is altogether a great Thrash Metal track and another album highlight. “Roots Of Resistance” continues with the aggression and pace of the previous track. The track has all the ingredients of classical Thrash Metal: the tight riffing, the directness and aggression, the catchiness in the melodies, the bridges with the background vocal support, and the break leading to the extended lead guitar solo at high pace. “Roots Of Resistance” is another album highlight, and it is no surprise that the track was released as lyric video with the YouTube link provided below. The album finishes with the title track, and it starts with an epic IRON MAIDEN-esque bass and guitar-driven instrumental part at a measured tempo. The track comes to life after around three minutes, and from then onwards, it has the typical Thrash Metal textures with verse parts at frantic pace driven by the tight riffing and mid-tempo chorus parts, which focus on the melodies with sing-along chorus lines. The break goes back to the pace and melodies introduced at the beginning and the highlight here is the excellent lead guitar solo. “Blood On Canvas” is a very strong track to go out and it is with about eight minutes the longest album track.

The new album of DARKNESS leaves me with mixed feelings. “Blood On Canvas” certainly has its moments, but there are also some tracks that do not have the drive, I expect from Thrash Metal songs. Highlights of the album are the guitar riffing and the lead guitars. The vocals are a bit one-dimensional and not very versatile. DARKNESS use well-tried traditional Thrash Metal concepts, but I miss a bit the dynamics at times. The album is well produced. “Blood On Canvas” is an album for old-school Thrashers, but is it an album that will be remembered for a long time? I am not sure about it.