Submission for Liberty

4Arm's third output Submission for Liberty is a record which roams over many ups and downs, and it feels like a wasted chance of creating something remarkable, stopping itself on the 'good' level instead. Directly from Australia, birthplace of Mortal Sin and Tyrus, as well as the recently arisen Harlott, among the others, the guys from 4Arm released a couple of standard thrash/groove albums before attempting a more sophisticated effort, focusing more on a complex song structure rather than on short, numerous tracks. It's more than a legit choice, at least when you can rely on talented musicians like them. Unfortunately, they confined all the good ideas in a few songs, and, as a matter of fact, probably only two tracks on here will surprise you, if you're expecting the ordinary revival thrash album.

I'll say something even stronger: the two longest tracks are simply amazing. There's not a second on 'While I Lie Awake' I would change, the guitars shine throughout the seven minutes and a half, the middle section is so well-placed and the chorus is capable of being stuck in your head for hours. 'Blood of Martyrs' instead provides an epic closing to the album, the introduction is left to a soft guitar, and the chorus is laid upon the same keyboard of the first track 'Sinn macht frei', in order to create a sort of circle throughout the course of the disc, a nice touch of class; the ending is triumphal, but reading the lyrics I expected something even better, to be honest. Oh, and for those who have read the previous review, this is the song where vocalist Danny Tomb sounds the most like James Hetfield, and in the middle part the similarity is so evident that it could be credible as a guest appearance by the Metallica frontman. Singing along 'So let them hate me now/And let them hurt me now...' as if it were a lost part from the Master of Puppets sessions is priceless.

So far, so good. The problem is, nearly all the remaining songs are a blend of thrash and groove that goes nowhere. A precious exception is the title-track, a slice of thrash that relies on speed more than all the others and features a good technical solo. I would also leave 'The Oppressed' out of that bunch of songs, but it's more a matter of personal tastes: it's a mid-paced song that doesn't feel forced like the others, the chorus is actually nice and the solo is simply fantastic. 'Taken Down', 'Raise a Fist', 'I Will Not Bow' are instead quite uninteresting, tiresome and they would be even unnecessary if it wasn't for the instrumental parts, which nearly managed to save the last one (listen and judge by yourself).

This happens because the guitarists Tomb and Johnny Glovasa are very, very talented. A few riffs are really successful, and the solos are always melodic and with a shredding accent at times. They are the strength of the band, beside the drummer Micheal Vafiotis, and honestly I'm discreetly disappointed they have left the band after 'Submission for Liberty'. Vafiotis is a really complete drummer, he can be really fast with both double bass and standard thrash beat, and he plays with enough variety even on the (frequent) slow parts, thanks to the massive presence of fills. I don't dislike this last factor, he isn't too much repetitive and this helps. Concerning the vocals, Danny Tomb is a decent singer, 'While I Lie Awake' surely wouldn't have been the same with another voice, but on the other hand the lack of memorability in some songs is also due to his constrained screams ('The Warning') which, albeit negligible on the title-track, don't feel actually enjoyable. All in all, a honest singer with a limited range and some improvable details, surely nowhere near the level of James Hetfield himself. Lastly the bassist Andy Hinterreiter is practically buried by the mix of the aforementioned instruments, I guess that below the wall of sound created by the guitars there has to be a bass, but I can't judge it. Obviously the modern production on here doesn't help, but I've appreciated the depth of the sound, especially regarding the drums.

Nothing much left to say, if you have grasped the meaning of my review you will immediately check the two best songs on here, and they will not disappoint you, I suppose. Then decide if it's the case to carry on with the rest of the album, the only thing I can assure is that it won't be a total waste of time. Also check out the latest Survivalist, which follows a not too different path.

Can't say that I fully grasp the correlation between the band name and the subject matter, but 4Arm seem to be one of the current standouts in the modern Australian thrash metal scene, right up there with Evile and Warbringer apropos of clinical, throwback-inclined procedures and beefy production values. Fans of Mortal Sin's last record Psychology of Death will find some decent stuff here, and there is a strong Metallica influence concerning lead passages and vocal intonation. 4Arm are often labeled as groovier fare, but I can't say that I totally grasp that abstraction. This is pretty typical stuff by most standards, tucking itself in between the folds of ballistic, napalm-infused rhythms and the occasional steamrolling note progression. In this sense, Submission for Liberty is yet another safe, well produced bridge that spans the Pacific Ocean and links the chains between Australia and The Bay Area. This has been going on since Mortal Sin broke through with Mayhemic Destruction, so while it is nice to see some modern bands stoking the once-lurid flames anew, 4Arm don't exactly blow me away here.

Those who are starving for a vocalist who nails the alcoholic drawl that Hetfield immortalized, Danny Tomb might just be your man. I can go either way concerning his standard shouting, but he does pull out a decent performance when the emanation of the music calls for a shift in tone. "Blood of Martyrs" is such a track, and it along with "When I Lie Awake" are two of the more ambitious, yet somehow strongest numbers here. It isn't really what I expected from a percussive thrash act, but 4Arm actually excel on these two and should write more tunes in this mold. There are also some really nice, classic leads like on the intro of "When I Lie Awake." Again, very much in the vein of Metallica when all of this comes together, and since the last truly killer lead interval Metallica ever wrote was the opening of "The Struggle Within," it is cool to see a resurgence of that here on Submission for Liberty.

Although I brushed aside the groove elements in the opening paragraph, the band does come close to this particular fusion at times. Think of the thrashiest moments from Machine Head's Burn My Eyes, and that is probably the closest 4Arm ever get. So for those expecting the next Exhorder or something, look elsewhere, as this is militaristic, mildly-engendering thrash metal that lifts more weight due to the production than the riff quality itself. Despite starting and strongly in an experimental and resonant manner, the entire middle of Submission of Liberty tests few boundaries and just barely earns a passing grade as a result, mainly due to a decent vocalist and intelligently-employed change ups. I actually reviewed Diamond Plate's Pulse recently, and I find that these Australians are about on the same level concerning quality of output.

But that doesn't change the fact that Submission of Liberty is a standard entry at the end of the day, serving as an inferior modern representation of a once-enthralling (and hugely underrated!) thrash scene. Danny Tomb quit the band this year, so I can't say I will be quite as invested in the potential followup. I enjoyed this record okay while I was playing it, but I don't think I would go out of my way to pursue 4Arm's output again. So-so thrash, and only worth consciously approaching if you are big on Metallica, Evile and the like.