Abuse Your Illusions

Italy is not a place thrashers usually picture when thinking about classic Thrash bands. Hyades would like to change that perception with their latest release of thrashing goodness, “Abuse Your Illusions.” The said album is a tour-de force of head kicking mosh grooves that will make you and your jean-jacketed friends do ‘The Toxic Waltz.” If you are fan of classic thrash, you won’t be able to control your hand from rolling into a fist that pumps back and forth to the catchy, crunchy rhythms. Nor will you have any control of your neck as it snaps back and forth to chugging riffs and gritty gallops. Marco Colombo’s vocals sound as if they were spawned from the DNA of Exodus’ Steve Souza and Destruction’s Marcel "Schmier" Schirmer. Much of the guitar style recalls a mixture of the two Thrash legends. ‘Liars’ shows guitarist Marco Negonda moving back and forth on his fret board in classic Destruction style. The aggressively sung chorus is damn similar to Exodus’ ‘War is my Shepard.’

While Destruction and Exodus are the two bands in the foreground, many other styles and bands exert an influence in “Abuse Your Illusions.” The GNR pun-heavy title alone says the band has a sense of humor, and combined with old school crossover moments, it is evident this band is a fan of Anthrax. The band photo featuring drummer Mauro De Brasi sporting an Anthrax t-shirt, flowery jam shorts, and a skate board reaffirms their devotion to one of the four 80s Thrash Titans. He looks like Joey Belladona in a picture from “Antisocial.” If he were wearing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle jams, you would swear this was an Anthrax photo. Also like Anthrax, the group focuses on social topics like war, hatred, and backstabbing friends. State of the ruined world lyrics and melodic, mini-solos on ‘Picture of a World’ takes a cue from another of Germany’s Thrash giants, Kreator. Other parts of the album show a definite NWOBHM influence.

The biggest surprise of “Abuse Your Illusions” is the group’s Thrash version of The Beastie Boys’ ‘Fight for Your Right.” The guitars are louder, heavier, and infinitely more metallic than the original high school party anthem. Hyades does a terrific job making this track their own without shaming the original. Genuis!

“Abuse your Illusions” is a masterpiece of throwback metal, recalling some of the world’s greatest Thrash bands at their creative peak. Only a small portion of the world’s die-hard thrashers have been lucky enough to see this band play in Italy supporting classic metal bands like Virgin Steel, Manilla Road and Helstar. A stint on Europe’s summer festival stages, mini-Euro tour and some festivals in the U.S. would surely have metal fans all over the world chanting “HYADES!”