Exumer ‘Hostile Defiance’
Album Review By Adam McCann
Metal Blade Records/Thrash Metal
Sadly, for Exumer, the band never received the same plaudits that were bestowed upon the likes of Kreator, Destruction and Sodom. Dig beneath the surface and what can be found is a band that although released few albums compared to their peers, the quality and integrity that Exumer purvey is to be admired. This can be seen their latest album ‘Hostile Defiance’.
Just like the band’s previous album ‘The Raging Tides’, Exumer’s new offering ‘Hostile Defiance’ is a magnificent piece of solid, Teutonic thrash metal that smashes through the speakers with the full fury of blistering drums, rampaging guitar riffs and biting vocals. It was always going to be a tall order to even equal ‘The Raging Tides’, but with their latest album Exumer deliver some serious competition to this; tracks such as ‘Raptor’, ‘Trapper’, ‘Dust Eater’ and the furious ‘Vertical Violence’ not only stand out as superb work on ‘Hostile Defiance’, but also some of the band’s best work to date. These songs show that there is not so much as fire, but rather a raging inferno burning out of control at the Exumer base camp and the tenacity, passion and integrity which oozes from this album that manages to engulf each song with an enjoyability and replayability that will be difficult to beat this year.
In fact, the worst thing about this album is that it will retell the same story of Exumer over the past 30 years; that is ‘Hostile Defiance’ will just not receive the praise and adulation that it deserves and that will be criminal. This album is superb and come year end, it will be riding very high and considered alongside Exumer’s best. If not, the best.
90/100
MHF Magazine/Adam McCann
