Whenever conversations about thrash metal inevitably turn to the question of, “if the Big Four were a Big Five…”, American acts usually tend to be among the first suggestions. However, when people finally remember Europe exists, the first name mentioned is always the same. Kreator.

Formed in 1982 under the names of Metal Militia, Tyrant and then Tormentor, frontman Mille Petrozza and drummer Jürgen “Ventor” Reil have been rupturing eardrums for four decades and are still showing no signs of slowing down. Trends have come and gone as often as band members (with even Reil leaving for a couple of years, himself) but Petrozza has always stuck to his guns; adapting, absorbing and experimenting with the changing tides of music rather than being overwhelmed and washed away by them. When thrash metal was at its lowest ebb in the early nineties, and while many other bands turned to dust, Kreator stood firm.

The undiplomatic, full-on bludgeoning of their earlier releases may have acquired a more melodic edge and the length between studio releases may have grown since the turn of the millennium, but the quality of the material and has never suffered. The guitars remain razor sharp and Mille continues to sing about insanity, hate, gods and violence, but now the riffs are not only devastatingly brutal but contain more hooks than an inexperienced fisherman.

Now on their fifteenth full length studio album, Hate Über Alles (Nuclear Blast), the Teutonic terrors still prove capable of springing a surprise or two. Opening with the Ennio Morricone influenced intro ‘Sergio Corbucci Is Dead’, Kreator pay tribute to the late Italian film director responsible for classic spaghetti westerns like Django and Navajo Joe. After the calm comes the storm, however, and the expected landslide of riffs begins in earnest with the merciless title track and the apocalyptic ‘Killer Of Jesus’ before things slow down with the thunderous drums and mid-paced chug of ‘Crush The Tyrants’.

If you’re not singing along to the catchy-as-fuck ‘Strongest Of The Strong’ by as early as the second chorus then there might actually be no hope for you. The fast paced gallop of the traditionally influenced ‘Become Immortal’ finds Mille in an autobiographical mood, screaming “remember where you came from” as he retraces his life in music over the years. The retro feeling continues with the Iron Maiden-meets-classic speed metal of ‘Conquer And Destroy’, the song featuring a surprisingly airy refrain amidst the savage riffs. 

Also certain to raise more than a few eyebrows is the band’s first use of female vocals as singer Sofia Portanet joins Mille at the mic on the memorable ‘Midnight Sun’. More Maiden influences resurface on ‘Demonic Future’ while ‘Pride Comes Before The Fall’ becomes an avalanche of groove-fuelled destruction after a deceptively gentle intro. Leaving the longest cut on the album until last, ‘Dying Planet’ is a devastating, portentous slow-burn co-written by Mille and new bass player Frédéric Leclercq (ex-Dragonforce).

Arthur Rizk‘s production is clean and sharp, and criminally underappreciated shredder Sami Yli-Sirniö turns in another top drawer performance as Hate Über Alles strikes a balance between the melody of Endorama and the finely tuned brutality of Enemy of God. 

Kreator might not be the same unrelenting blur of (extreme) aggression that released Pleasure to Kill all those years ago but it’s great to see the Flag of Hate still being proudly flown over another exhilarating riot of violence.

Buy the album here :https://youtu.be/YVfEW5mgrd0

9 / 10

GARY ALCOCK