Delirium Tremens – Thrashing Warthogs
Merciless Records – October 2004
By Jason Jordan
I discovered two ways to begin this review, and I can’t decide between them:
1. After perusing the liner notes, all I could utter was, “Oh…my…God.”
Or,
2.
SLAAAAYER!!!
Okay, now that the requisite introduction is out of the way, we can move on to the bulk.
Delirium Tremens play a self-proclaimed concoction of old-school, thrash metal.
Thrashing Warthogs, I’m both pleased and aggravated to say, attempts to be a clone of
Slayer’s best renderings such as
Seasons in the Abyss,
Reign in Blood, or
South of Heaven. Now, no one short of
Slayer themselves can pull the shtick off convincingly, but there are those that can easily mimic the pioneering titans.
All compositions on aforesaid release are in the thrash vein a la an ‘80’s style, to reiterate. Occurrences like “Worship Satan,” “Rot in Hell,” and “Follow Us if You Want to Die” all encapsulate the feel of the old-school, in addition to featuring solid musicianship and decent vox. Where the group supremely falters, on the other hand, is in regard to their substantial lack of originality. Arguably, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but I don’t understand why a band’s blood and sweat should be voluntarily funneled into a record that pales in comparison to its inspiration.
Thrashing Warthogs isn’t bad, but
Delirium Tremens really need to beef up their repertoire to gain ground in the industry. My advice – as if they want to hear it – is to move away from
Slayer and establish a unique sound. And you, reader, never look at the liner notes. Don’t ever read the lyrics either. You have been warned.
7/10
Official Delirium Tremens website
Official Merciless Records website
