Spare No One

With a name falling right in the middle of a Venn diagram between 'reassuring monikers' and 'puns that shouldn't really work, but somehow they do', ArchiTorture is a Finnish modern (in time, definitely not in sound) thrash band centered around the figures of Anssi Kantola and Sami Eskola, and if there's really something else you need to know about them, is that they aren't friendly. Still need proof? You can check their debut, which they greeted the world with, at the war cry of Spare No One, pretty much a declaration of intents from the very title.

With one 3-minute no-frills, berserk thrasher opening the album, one in the middle and one closing it, you're likely to think that's their go-to style, but they also manage to deliver longer songs that show signs of brilliance above average, like 'Circle of Aggression' with its remarkable solo section and a final melodic solo to boot, and 'At the Gates of Sodom', which possesses an all-around killer second half. 'Exhaltation of Filth' has a pretty nice chorus riff, even if the band seems constantly worried about being too slow. Shame that 'Chapels of Sin, Cities of Lust', incidentally the only track devoid of high-speed spasms, isn't that exciting, and is basically the only totally skippable track.

The vocals of Petri Nordman don't quite do the rest of the band justice, being quite immature and unrefined, without adapting to a style in particular, rather giving the impression to be simply screaming at full energy for the entire time. He sometimes ends up being a more hysterical version of Tempo of the Damned-era Zetro's croaking with a revisable pronunciation. You can rest assured, though, that his bandmates aren't willing to pass for relaxed human beings who definitely didn't abuse caffeine or energy drinks. When the pace kicks up, they join their collective thirst for blood, and if the riffwork isn't particularly elaborated... oh well. Quite a venial sin sometimes. I'm also not the biggest fan of the production, with the guitars feeling a little bit too dry and thin, but nothing offensive (and the bassist, again Nordman, is thankful).

ArchiTorture would surely refine their sound on the sophomore World Peace, released in 2018 after huge line-up changes (most notably, at the mic). Spare No One can hit very hard, very fast or both, and that alone is enough to prevent it from getting a negative score, but at times the immature, explosive enthusiasm almost feels like uncontrolled by the band itself. Of course, none of this will render the good ol' headbanging impossible.

Now would anyone care to explain to me how you can physically commit 'Axe Suicide'?

-review written for the 8th Diamhea Memorial Review Challenge – may you rest in peace, Chris.