Maze of Torment - Hidden Cruelty
Black Lodge - BLOD 048CD - April 27, 2007
By George Grant
Since the mid 90s Sweden’s
Maze of Torment has been releasing their furious death/thrash metal hybrid. On now their sixth studio album,
Hidden Cruelty,
Maze of Torment hopes to continue their aggressive attack for the hungry fans. The label promised this album to be the one where
Maze of Torment really finds their identity. Considering how most modern “thrash” bands fail to breathe fresh air into the genre, I was very anxious to hear
Maze of Torment’s new sound.
If the year was 1986, and this album was released before
Slayer’s masterpiece
Reign in Blood, then
Maze of Torment might have an identity. Just about all the riffs you will hear on this album seem to be lifted from
Reign in Blood. It was very shocking for me to hear the similarity of the bands. I’ve heard bands borrow influences from
Slayer but never to the degree that
Maze of Torment does. There are moments on
Hidden Cruelty where they really do sound like a
Slayer cover band.
Despite
Maze of Torment’s lack of creativity, this album is still a fun listen. The old-school thrash riffs that litter the album are easy to get hooked on. Also, many of the chorus lines will be stuck in your head. Even after one listen. Vocalist Erik Sahlström sounds like a marriage of Tom Araya (
Slayer) and Mille Petrozza (
Kreator), and considering the music
Maze of Torment plays this is a perfect fit. Even though the band claims to be a death/thrash metal hybrid, most of the music on
Hidden Cruelty stays within the thrash metal style. However, on
‘A Few More Bullets’ the band’s death metal influences do come through, but this doesn’t last long.
If you’ve heard
Slayer, and I hope you have, then you know exactly what
Maze of Torment sounds like.
Hidden Cruelty even sounds more
Slayer-like than
Christ Illusion. Therefore, any fans of
Slayer’s older style should consider looking into
Maze of Torment. Just don’t be surprised if you find yourself asking: Where have I heard this before?
Official Maze of Torment Website
Official Black Lodge Website
