Germany is for Thrash Metal what the Maracana Stadium in Brazil is for soccer. ERADICATOR hailing from Lennestadt is one of the many great Thrash Metal bands beyond the Teutonic Big Four and they are active for about 17 years. After releasing one demo, one split and four full-length albums, "Influenced Denied" is now their fifth album and it was produced, mixed and mastered by Sebastian Levermann (ORDEN OGAN; ASPHYX; RHAPSODY OF FIRE). The album was released via German label Metalville which has a number of Power Metal, progressive Metal, and Heavy Metal bands among their roster. It has a length of 47 minutes.

So the feeling is a bit like in "Groundhog Day": three years are over and ERADICATOR come up with a new album again. The procedure repeats since 2009, hence they deliver another demolition charge of finest Thrash Metal based on Bay Area inspirations. The ERADICATOR Thrash Metal has not changed a lot since 2009. There is not a big deal of experimentation, they do what they do best: no nonsense and honest Thrash Metal.

It all starts with "Driven By Illusion", an opening track which sets the tone: tight and aggressive guitar riffing, tempo changes mostly around mid-tempo, catchy lead guitar sequences including a great lead guitar solo during the break and another one during the speed attack shortly afterwards. The vocals are mostly a bit higher pitched throughout the album. "Hate Preach" has a bit more aggression in the riffing and is less playful with the lead guitars. The background chorus reminds me a bit on AGNOSTIC FRONT (I might have an exceptional view on that), which adds a bit of Hardcore vibes to the sound. Highlight here is another great lead guitar solo. Speaking about highlights, "Echo Chamber" has all the attributes to become a fan favorite: catchy guitar riffing and leads all played at mid-tempo as well as great melodies.

The middle part of the album contains the highly paced and more aggressive tracks. The title song and also "5-0-1" have lots of aggression in the riffing, but still maintaining good melodic components. A bit of a downside are the highly pitched vocals which are often difficult to follow. "5-0-1" has really a perfect aggressive start driven by the guitars and lots of double-bass drumming. The guitar theme has a few early EXODUS vibes, however, the melodic chorus section came a bit as a surprise to me and takes of the anger of the track. "Jackals To Chain" is one of the highlights of the album. It continues with another early EXODUS inspired verse section while the chorus section maintains the aggression and the open chords fit perfectly to the overall theme of the track.

"Influence Denied" includes a few songs with lyrics that have a critical view on the society, for example "Hate Preach", "Mondays For Murder", or "Hypocrite". "Mondays For Murder" is perhaps the most obvious example since it deals highly critical with society not listening to scientists and Fridays For Future in terms of climate change. The track was released as video and the YouTube link is given below. "Hypocrite" continues with the thrash attack consisting of razor-sharp guitar riffs, relentless drumming, and crunching bass lines. The lead guitar parts have great melodies and the lead guitar solo has a very good balance between being straight forward and being playful.

ERADICATOR deliver an excellent Thrash Metal album which contains a great mix of Bay Area inspired rhythms and riffs, aggressiveness, comprehensive melodies, and outstanding guitar work. The rhythm and lead guitars are the highlights of the album. "Influence Denied" shows why ERADICATOR is one of the most established Thrash Metal bands in Germany for such a long time. The album is very well produced. Thrash Metal fans will be delighted with "Influence Denied" and will be excited to see ERADICATOR playing the new material live on stage.