From Hamburg Germany WARPATH presents us with their latest "Innocence Lost (30 YEARS OF WARPATH)" full length effort - released on December 4th 2020. Previous releases include a demonstration E.P. during year 1991 entitled "Warpath". Followed by "When War Begins...Truth Disappears" released during year 1992. 1993 saw another full-length release entitled "Massive"; 1994 followed with full release "Against Everyone"; as 1996 found yet another full release entitled "Kill Your Enemy".   After a lengthy break year 2017 found "Bullets For A Desert Session". "Filthy Bastard Culture" followed during year 2018.

"Innocence lost" - If falling prey to the expression of aggression is in any way synonymous to the loss of innocence, the first album track begins quickly and opens fully within ten seconds.  Drummer Norman Rieck is as readily quick with his hands as he is steadily adroit with his feet. "Black Metal" - the second album track is as appropriately raw as a VENOM cover can be. Sabina Classen is heard at about   Just after two minutes pass, the guitars add a rapturous rhythmic "drum fill".  What - a drum fill on guitar?? Only in heavy metal folks. Guitar players Claudio Illanes & Roman Spinka accentuate the first note of the descending lick, while drummer Norman Rieck with fistfulls of drumsticks sustains the thrash.

"Reborn" - the third album track opens with a guitar pick scraping distorted guitar strings - and in this case "the wheels are spinning out" as Warpath drives you on a high speed chase. Listeners will hold fast (and I mean fast) to the bass and guitar mix which fully grounds the ear upon the root - but the rest of the body sways with the energy of this tempo. At about two minutes thirty seconds - the tempo slows to a "Space Invaders" mosh-allowing us to catch our winded breath. At about three minutes fifty seconds, the former energy returns with guitar leads reminiscient to the machine gun bullet spray guitar leads in "Class Dismissed" by "EXODUS".

"Against Everyone" - the fourth album track has a full bottom presence of a distorted bass.   The most interesting innovations of this song occur at about two minutes fifty seconds, and we have innovation here as the time signature moves to three:  the bass and guitars accent the first beat, while two and three follow as weaker beats but are still necessary. Norman Rieck, in simultaneous variation, maintains a four/four feel on the bass drum. ONE-two three; ONE-two three;  ONE-two three;  ONE-two three.  I literate this three beat feel four times-and not without reason while Norman Rieck maintains a four/four feel on the bass drum. Most thrashers would head-bang with the first beat; Sören Meyer's furious distorted bass will never abandon the listener; although he's "Against Everyone", he's not against you. "Massive" - the fifth album track is a short & dirty punk mosh tune written for good Ole' Fashioned fist in your face head banging - à la STORMTROOPERS OF DEATH that later evolved into METHOD OF DESTRUCTION - only to devolve to that which they always were-nor could ever help not to be.

"Extend" - the sixth track album track begins with a feel quite popularly known among thrashers by METALLICA'S "helpless" from the 1987 E.P. "Garage Days Revisited". However at about thirty seconds into the song, teeth clench as my upper lip curls as the aggression increases while Norman Rieck & Sören Meyer - on drums and bass respectively move to double time. I love when pure thrash metal bands obscure the distinctive lines that separate it from speed metal - and Norman & Sören transition through tempo & rhythmic changes with ease. Though speedy bouts are short and sweet, this is true thrash utilizing additional rhythmic changes into newer fistfull (two-bit) two beat rhythms (accent on the beat while the subdivided up-beat, without accent, is equally important)-wistfully reminiscent of the mosh pits that await us post vaccination. The song ends in yet another rhythmic variety. One (and two and); One (and two and); One (and two and). The 'and-two-and' is a homogeneous sixteenth note pattern that further subdivides the already divided beat. Guitarists Claudio Illanes & Roman Spinka keep us on track till the end.

"That's For Me" - the seventh album track opens in honor of SOD'S "March of the SOD". ("SOD" is "STORMTROOPERS OF DEATH"). "I still don't know what / I was waiting for / I know what is true / But you don't wanna hear / For you".  We can't see Digger Weiss carry the candle of Billy Milano - but we hear the influence. If "That's For Me" means WARPATH'S for "SOD"; then I'm for them": WARPATH on stage, to lead us back to the mosh pit. "Paranoia" - the eighth album track is pure mosh. Opening with a speedy thrash which continues through the verses - and slows for the chorus section; during some of which, Sören Meyer plays a sixteenth note legato rhythmic pattern beneath a slower-less subdivided beat; subdivided yes - but he plays this smoothly. If you've ever seen a long hair roll his entire neck & head to a thrash tune, and if you read this I know you have, this is why.

"F.U." - the ninth album track is a bit less thrashy and more of a cross between classic heavy metal and punk; still the anger known through the more aggressive styles of metal is prevalent. The vocal style of Digger Weiss with clear influence of "Tom Warrior" (of CELTIC FROST, TRIPTYKON, HELLHAMER, and APOLLYON SUN) adds to the punkish vibe more clearly in this song than in those more rhythmically thrashy. "Crossing" - the tenth album track, morose and grave, features singer Digger Weiss rather than through a thrash inspired yell, sings through the verses in a low almost frog pitch, "Ranting and raving the elements / A storm is gathering / The ocean is seething with rage / The wind screams out in pain / With howling winds in the sail / Life takes it's course / The rain is beaten my face / I scream out through the world". The song ends with undistorted arpeggiated guitars replete with the electronic chorus (not choral) effect.

"God Is Dead" - the eleventh album track features spoken vocals by guitarist Claudio Illanes-opens with a classic metal groove of a moderate tempo. This would be among heavier songs - with less thrash influence-not that the thrash feel is ever absent. The lyrical theme includes "God is dead / They find his body with a hammer in his head / I nailed his heart to the cross / For the creation of the human race".