What is more “thrash” than to wear old, falling to pieces blue tight jeans, white basketball sneakers, long hair and a denim non sleeve jacket full of other bands patches…well actually playing good thrash! And even when Violator is smart enough as to capture the “old school” aroma with a couple of catchy riffs, they fail in presenting more than just another band trying to revive the movement (which never died, or did Kreator, Megadeth, Exodus, Destruction, Exciter stop playing thrash and nobody told the media?).

The most obvious influence to be heard on Chemical Assault would be Exodus; Violator doesn’t exactly copy Gary Holt’s style but it does carry some of his earlier, angrier and raw material ideas that made the San Francisco band such a huge name. These Brazilians possess the ability to entertain with their simple, catchy and fun songs; all played and recorded in a very raw (some might called it organic!) manner that could be envy by any “true BM” outfit, nonetheless they still manage to keep a primal way of sophistication by allowing the recording to sound clear, not too clear but comprehensible enough as for the listener to realize some interesting solo sections, which might not provide any memorable moments but they do accomplish the fulfillment of another “basic” idea within thrash metal…you need solos!

Violator is fun; the album does provide some intense, fast riffs that are simple enough and catchy enough as for you to get into the band fairly quickly… so why didn’t I gave this album a 10 or an 8 at least; simple really, despite just how fun “Chemical Assault” can be, and it is as I mention before; the album just manages to stick to the bunch of retro thrash bands that are coming out these days, nothing wrong with it, but this huge avalanche of retro, thrash kids are pretty close to creating what happened to the melodic death metal wave that hit us a couple of years ago, poring so many bands that sound exactly the same from one another, eventually saturates the minds, the market and the fans, making the genre a trend and not a philosophy. So what’s exactly wrong with Violator, well the same thing that is wrong and that is good about the following bands: Bonded by blood, Evile, Gama Bomb, Dr. Livingdead, Warbringer and Municipal Waste.

PS: I have to confess, I fucking loved Addicted to Mosh…that song rules!!!