Delirium

Canada's roster certainly isn't short of decent thrash metal. Though they're never quite at the forefront of zines as their US counterparts, icon veterans such as Annihilator or up-and-coming gems like Lutharö or West Of Hell all kick various amounts of ass, and manage to carve unique identities whilst doing so. As is the case with Calgary's Hazzerd. Having existed since at least 2013, Hazzerd play technically-infused, progressively-tinged thrash metal straight out of the early '90s - with the awesome production quality to match. Their sophomore effort, 2020's Delirium, may seem, externally, just like any other nu-thrash record buried among the piles of rejects of this sub-genre. However, this quartet stand out from the crowd in one aspect: this is the only thrash metal band I know where the drummer is the vocalist. Off the top of my head, the only metal band, period, where the drummer is the vocalist! Dylan Westendorp - besides having an awesome name - does a stellar job behind both the kit and the mic; his vocals, in particular, being brilliantly sneery and full of character.

This might explain, however, why the drums are so far forward in the mix! Dylan may be the semi-star of the show, but that's not to disparage the other band members, especially the dual guitar attack of Brendan and Toryin. These guys bounce off each other, frantically soloing like there's no tomorrow...but only when the song allows. Every frenetic lick and lead break is both tasteful and virtuosic. David Sprague's bass is pretty buried - but that's not particularly unusual for this style - however, he does get some brief moments to shine, such as the ripping "Illuminated Truth" or the start of "Victim Of A Desperate Mind". All band members get to flex their chops in the album's centrepiece: the hefty instrumental "Call Of The Void". A silly idea on paper, a 6-minute thrash metal instrumental suddenly makes sense when Hazzerd pull it off with such aplomb. The climax of this track, especially, is stunning and exudes a surprisingly beautiful melody.

Delirium has the technical chops thanks to its talented performers, but can be a little difficult and daunting to experience as a whole package thanks to its odd tonal shifts and sections of filler. Opener "Sacrifice Them (In The Name Of God)" is brilliant. It takes a slower-than-expected approach, but the chorus is total shout-along gold and it brims with scathing anger. The filler comes in the form of little meaningless segments that disrupt the flow of blazing thrash these guys could be producing. "Waking Nightmare" generally tears through the speakers, but starts with a minute of noodling; "Victim Of A Desperate Mind" definitely drags for a minute and a half too long; and ending with the lengthy "The Decline" - followed by the acoustic closer "The End" - doesn't make for the explosive climax I was hoping. This LP didn't need to be quite as long as 50 minutes, but deep within its catacombs are some moments of simple, pure and sincere speed metal glory.

The last minute of "Waking Nightmare" is an exercise in air-guitar and headbanging that every thrash metal fan should mosh around their bedroom to, and "Sanctuary For The Mad" wouldn't be out of place on Anthrax's Persistence Of Time. However, the jewel in the Delirium crown has to be the shred-tastic "Dead In The Shed" (or should that be 'shed-tastic?'). This is the song that makes the most sense when compared to the album art or production quality. The hilarious lyrics, party-thrash atmosphere and general non-stop youthful vibrancy make it easily the highlight of the disc. Hazzerd definitely have incredible amounts of potential, and have made me want to keep my eye on them, but Delirium falls just slightly short of being placed among the highest ranks of thrash metal for 2020. It's got excellent moments, but is tonally inconsistent.

(Originally written for www.metal-observer.com)