Thrashsquatch - Return of the Living Shred

I wasn't too familiar with Thrashsquatch until earlier this year, when an Instagram account plugging the UK thrash scene brought them up. Wasn't going to forget a name like that, was I? As you can probably tell, they don't take themselves too seriously, but do play a blistering, unpretentious, fist-pumping take on thrash metal, with elements of hardcore punk and wider heavy metal scattered into their sound. Thrashsquatch's second EP comes a little over three years since their self-titled debut release.  'Return of the Living Shred' picks up from where the Chesterfield quintet left off last time, with a sound that doesn't reinvent the wheel but certainly comes across as more refined and unified than on their last outing.

The groovy 'Human Compost' opens the EP at a relatively medium tempo. It's made for live shows and you can see the sweaty moshpits, masses of windmilling hair and lyrics being shouted back in your minds eye above the dissonant melodies and thrashy chugs. 'Head Transplant' does pick up the pace a gear, but there's still room for groove and a crushing breakdown. It's over in less than a minute, but the impact is effective and memorable. You'll be singing along before you know it...

'Destroyer of Worlds' is very strong compositionally, with moments of melody among the frenetic energy. Although it lacks the humour of the two before it, the songwriting more than makes up for anything to feel 'lost'. With an abundance of great riffs slotted into three and a half minutes, it has many of the EP's best. 'Hostile Force' kicks in with an old-school heavy metal solo before vocals are viciously spat out over an infectious punk-tinged verse. The melodic moments again are very strong, and come across much more convincingly than on their debut. Really, this is the most marked difference between the two releases.

'Return of the Living Shred' signs off with a real injection of viciousness. 'Shreds of Sanity', simply put, goes harder than most of the rest of the EP. A true standout of the release, it has Thrashsquatch's punky elements, but with a vengeful dose of heaviness that really knocks the listener for six. The headbang-y, anthemic 'Skeleton Men' rounds everything off with its tight grooves and shout-along vocal lines. Make sure you learn the lyrics and gang vocals on this EP so you can shout them back at their shows by the time they're on again. 

Thrashsquatch have returned, with living shred, and with improvement, too - in terms of production, melody and overall memorability. Without any real weak tracks, it's just eighteen minutes of good, fun thrash. With metal sometimes tending to be gloomy and over-serious, that's exactly what you want sometimes, right? Their new EP comes out on New Year's Day - pre-order it here on their Bandcamp. Good stuff all round.

MN