ONSLAUGHT

If the UK thrash metal scene of the 1980s was a story of underachievement, its most prominent bands were still every bit the equal of their international counterparts. Originally waist deep in hardcore punk, ONSLAUGHT eschewed both the pagan fury of SABBAT and the Bay Area bombast of XENTRIX, favoring a dirty, violent and relentless strain of speed metal that owed as much to DISCHARGE and MOTÖRHEAD as it did to anything happening in thrash at the time. 40 years on, ONSLAUGHT have had their fair share of highs and lows, but there is no evidence that the band's intensity has diminished one iota. As if to prove the point, "Origins Of Aggression" goes back to the start. A game of two halves, it begins with ten re-recorded classics from the band's earliest years and concludes with a sustained barrage of cover songs that highlight the nascent ONSLAUGHT's timeless inspirations. Once again showcasing the lineup that released the brilliant "Generation Antichrist" in 2020, the Brits are effectively announcing a new chapter in their career, with a new record deal and a refreshed determination to keep the legacy alive.

For long-time fans and newcomers alike, this seems like a perfect reintroduction to ONSLAUGHT's world of metallic warfare. The re-recorded originals are a neck-wrecking joy. From short, sharp openers, "Thermonuclear Devastation" and "Black Horse Of Famine" (both taken from ONSLAUGHT's seminal first demo, circa 1983),to the more streamlined and sophisticated thrash of "Fight With The Beast" and "In Search Of Sanity", these new versions take nothing away from the filthy authenticity of the originals, while doing an excellent job of dragging everything into the present day, particularly in sonic terms. Given the general reaction to projects like this, there definitely will be some dissent from old-school purists, but unlike, say, EXODUS's "Let There Be Blood", "Origins Of Aggression" is never self-conscious about being modern. Instead, ONSLAUGHT keep things simple, stick to the original blueprint, and play everything as if their lives depend on it. The results are ridiculously exciting.

The second half of the album is, inevitably, more of a mixed bag than the first. Covers albums are a risky business, but there is no faulting ONSLAUGHT's choices, nor the deranged intensity they bring to their reinterpretations. In general, these songs are played straight, albeit with the same monstrous, 21st-century thrash sound that powered the album's first half. MOTÖRHEAD's "Iron Fist" is gleefully eaten up, a brace of DISCHARGE tunes noisily celebrate the UK punks' vast influence on underground metal (and hats off for picking the magnificent "Drunk With Power" over more obvious cuts from "Hear Nothing, See Nothing, Say Nothing"),and both JUDAS PRIEST and KILLING JOKE are assimilated into ONSLAUGHT's caustic attack with skill, the latter's "Wardance" proving to be a particularly inspired selection. Similarly, an utterly rabid take on THE EXPLOITED's "U.K. 82" adds extra muscle to what was already one of the hardest punk songs of the '80s. In contrast, a cover of DEAD KENNEDYS' "Holiday In Cambodia" falls slightly flat, largely due to some curious chord alterations, and the SEX PISTOLS' "Holidays In The Sun" should arguably have been faster and nastier. But these are small quibbles. As they prove on a truly excellent version of BLACK SABBATH's "War Pigs", ONSLAUGHT are having so much fun on this record that the whys and wherefores of particular covers are irrelevant. One of the greatest UK thrash metal bands are kick-starting a late career renaissance with an album that perfectly encapsulates everything that has made them great over the last four decades.