The four-piece Australian band Harlott is back with its sophomore album, two years after their quite noticeable debut with “Origin”. If you’re into American-style thrash metal, “Proliferation” won’t be left unnoticed.
HARLOTT’s sound has its roots on the Bay-area thrash metal style that has been mastered and perfected by the “Big Four” plus EXODUS and TESTAMENT, for more than 30 years now. So, the similarities are more than expected. The band though, couldn’t care less about them or the slight lack of individual style that someone might notice. They play with passion and they deliver some fairly good thrash metal vibes full of heavy, sharp guitar riffs, intriguing solos, pounding double bass drumming and raging vocals.
Andy Hudson’s vocal style could be described as the perfect balance between Tom Araya and Chuck Billy. The guitars sound crunchy during the heavy “SLAYER meets EXODUS” riffs, while they manage to be penetrating throughout tremolo-picked lead sections. Also, a slight pinch of ANTHRAX spice is included on “Civil Unrest”, to make things a little more diverse. The impressive drumming of Dan Van Twest pushes the technical proficiency of the songs to the limit, creating a solid result.
The self-titled opening track opens the album with a calm melodic intro before the first high speed riffs make their entrance. The album lasts for approximately 44 minutes and if one thing’s sure, is that you won’t get bored. The twelve shot-like songs will keep you on your toes till the end. If I had to pick the album’s most notable moments, I would choose “Lord Of War”, “Hellbent” and “Legion”. But I’m sure that anyone can find his own favorites, as “Proliferation” contains no fillers.
All in all, HARLOTT are not trying to bring anything new to the genre. After all, thrash metal has never been about reinventing the wheel. HARLOTT’s second album is a decent effort, worthy of repeated hearings. If you’re looking for innovations and experimentations try something else. “Proliferation” is all about pure, straight thrash metal. Nothing less, nothing more.
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