Animator-Blacklisted

The problem with a lot of modern thrash metal (and rethrash in particular) is that the music is too often about topics like partying and girls, we rarely get too hear a thrash metal band who writes about societal problems in an intelligent way. That is the niche Animator apparently seek to fill with Blacklisted a dazzling thrash metal record filled with some simply fantastic lyrics Animator proffer something up a little different to Jeff Hanneman's unholy throne. Something that has the potential to get Animator enough attention to finally hit the big time.

Asides from the lyrics this album pretty well rips from a musical standpoint. There are lots of epic introductions (Especially on the first track, State of Emergency) and blazing solos. My one criticism is that some of the songs are a bit too long and start to lose the listeners interest after the four minute mark. Yet the band seem to be talented enough songwriters that even the longer songs work pretty well. I like a lot of the choruses, the more thrash anthem-type ones give the group a nice old school feel. In particular the song Western Shadow has an especially excellent chorus with its immortal cry of "Freedom is worth our lives". This one cry basically sums up the ideology behind the album and helps to drive Western Shadow to the point of being one of the best on the record.

In conclusion, if you're looking for a hard hitting throat tearing thrash metal record that goes a bit beyond the party thrash that is only far too common in this day and age then Animator's Blacklisted is the record for you. Their lyrics add so much to the music by directly dealing with some of the most pressing social concepts of our age, even as the music obeys the primal directives that define so much of what thrash metal is. So go out, turn Blacklisted up to the max, think about the significance of the lyrics and then start up a massive circle pit!

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