Thrash Metal, after passing the 90's into the depths of the void of the underground, came back to evidence with the titans arising again, and it served to unleash a invasion of new bands of the genre, with some being just collectors of clichés and bringing nothing new, but with others bringing so fresh approaches to the genre. And one interesting name of Dutch scene is the quartet RIPSAW, who comes to celebrate their 15^th birthday with the ear shredder called "15 Skullbashing Years". Their music can be said a fusion of the North American Thrash Metal models (especially of the East Coast, having clear influences of acts as NUCLEAR ASSAULT, OVERKILL, and obviously, ANTHRAX), but with a personal and extremely savage approach.

They bear a very good set of technical arrangements (especially due the rhythmic shifts), catchy dry melodies during the choruses and solos, but the energy that these songs bear is enough to light a megalopolis during one year! It's frantic, hypnotic, and hard to resist to. Yes, it's a very good release. The band entered the studio to record this EP with Wouter Bloemen taking care of the recordings and mixing. And it seems that things were done in a very spontaneous and almost hardcorized form, because it feels like a bomb of weight and aggressiveness, but done in an organic form. It's good to hear such thing.

These four songs are establishing a link between the past and the present: on one hand, there are two new songs, "In Bloom" (a massive Thrash Metal song with sharp contrasts between fast and slow rhythms, with a very good chorus and a brutal weight coming from the technical work of bass guitar and drums) and "Disliked" (that brings the band into a more Crossover/Hardcore front, aggressive and nasty, with very good guitar riffs and solos); on the other hand, new versions for songs of their first EP, 2007's "Skullbashing Heavy Metal for the Masses", that are "Fuck You Nihilist" (a furious and massive Thrash Metal song with clear traces of Hardcore elements, with excellent vocals and guitars), and "It's a Dirty Job" (a solid wall of sound is created by the band, with excellent rhythmic contrasts unleashed by bass guitar and drums). So it seems that their future is really great.

All that's left to say: "15 Skullbashing Years" is showing that 15 years passed too fast, but the next ones can bring RIPSAW to success, indeed. Just spin the disk and check it (if your neck will support such an onslaught).