Serpentor

SERPENTOR – SERPENTOR.

Back in 1999, the thrash band Serpentor was formed under the influence of Testament and Slayer. And that’s quite evident in this self-titled debut album released on 2001 which sounds like pure Testament worship.
The cadence and structure of the riffs harkens to 80´s Testament but the vocalizations are more reminiscent of 90´s Testament and the album’s production and guitar tone are quite similar to the ones used by Testament on 1999´s “The Gathering”.

We have the riff-oriented “Militares Criminales”. No homosexual Nevermore-type of modern production, no half-thrash riffs at sight, just pure Testament worship. And then come 3 foreboding thrash tunes in the form of the riff-massacres “Tierra Sucia”, “Vomitando Odio” and “Juicio Final”.

“Eterna Oscuridad” is quite suffocative but still subtly more melodic than the rest, and it has a melodic solo section that fucking owns.. “Condenado Al Infierno” starts off as a slow ballad but then morphs into an insane thrasher.

Next is “En La Mira” which is one of the highlights of the album. It’s a crippling and infernal thrashy number with a semi-godly main riff and a chorus totally reminiscent of Testament’s “Into The Pit”. Reminiscent you say? It’s exactly the same chorus and the same vocal melody.

Then “Resignado” and “Angeles De La Oscuridad” are nice even if a bit generic thrasher songs with brutal riffs but yet with quite a strong melodic presence in the aforementioned riffs. Next is other of the highlights, “Maldito Punga”, which starts with a foreboding opening riff that kicks into an even better main riff and then BANG! Interesting and slamming thrash metal with a solo at 2:18 that sounds like the solo towards the end on “Apocalyptic City”. There’s a bonus track on my edition of the album; it’s called “Alcoholemia” and it’s a pretty decent thash number with some cool leads and interludes.

But, of course, this album has some minor flaws; one of them is that it is quite repetitive and some of the songs just plod along showing riffs that are recycled and an apparent lack of memorabilia. “Justicia” and “Te Arrepentiras” are the biggest examples of this.

Through the entire album the vocalist Guillermo Romero growls tempestuously but also shrieks insanely. The riffs are pretty good, the bass is kinda just there giving the band a low-end and the drumming is brutal and maniacal all the time.

Conclusion: Do you like Testament? Do you want riffs? Do you want thrash? Then you’ve come to the right place. This is a nice thrash album.