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Dead Head - Depression Tank review




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Reviewer:
7.4

7 users:
6.29
Band: Dead Head
Album: Depression Tank
Style: Thrash metal
Release date: January 2009


01. Dissolved In Purity
02. Green Angel
03. Cryptocynic
04. The Swing
05. Daemonique
06. Firegate
07. Less Than Zero
08. Murder
09. Nero Dies
10. Hateland
11. Pesticide

To be completely honest with you, I had never heard of this band until I saw its name mentioned somewhere here on Metal Storm. For those of you who, like me, had never heard of this band until reading these lines, Dead Head is a thrash metal band from the Netherlands who started to play in 1989. Depression Tank is the fifth full-length album from the band. It was released in February 2009 via Displeased Records.

Since their debut the slogan of the band remains the same and has never changed: "fuck commercialism, fuck fashion, fuck you!", a statement fully announcing the colour of a bestial album. Depression Tank kicks off with the awesome track "Dissolved In Purity", which is a perfect opener. Indeed, this song contains all elements of what thrash metal should have: fast and percussive riffing parts leading to great guitars solo scattered along the minutes and supported by an insane drumming in the background. The whole album remains in the same vein, delivering effective guitar parts mixed with aggressive vocals along the minutes. The tempo during the whole album is high which reinforces the aggressiveness of Depression Tank. One of the best examples of this musical bestiality can be found on the track "Less Than Zero". Indeed, in near than two minutes and a half Dead Head deliver an intense track containing solid guitars riffing, raging vocals, all of it supported by insane drumming in the background. This song is purely head-breaking and remains my favourite track of the album.

Furthermore, one must be enlightened that Depression Tank is not strictly a mix of aggressiveness and bestiality. The album indeed hosts more "mid-tempo" parts (perhaps "slow parts" should be a more appropriate word), such as on "Nero Dies" or in the middle of the track "Demoniaque". The incursion of all these slow parts contributes to breaking the monotony which could have been found on a simple "full-fast blast" album and in a lesser extent to insufflate a range of variety during the whole course of the album.

Depression Tank remains a solid album and hosts no forgettable moments. The production is far for being bad too: the sound is clear, powerful and all instruments are audible which is an appreciable point. Alltogether, if you are looking for a good thrash metal album, full of rage and bestiality, you really should have a listen to Depression Tank. Even though it was not the best thrash metal album of the year 2009, it remains certainly among the ones which deserve a listen. So put this CD into your player and, as stated in the band's slogan above, let them fuck you with their Depression Tank.


Rating breakdown
Performance: 8
Songwriting: 8
Originality: 7
Production: 7

Written by White Winter Sun | 28.06.2010




Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.


Comments

Comments: 9   Visited by: 37 users
28.06.2010 - 16:06
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
Staff
Doesn't bestiality mean to partake in sexual acts with animals?
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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28.06.2010 - 18:45
White Winter Sun
Laboratory's Rat
Elite
Written by Troy Killjoy on 28.06.2010 at 16:06

Doesn't bestiality mean to partake in sexual acts with animals?

From what I know, in the literal sense it means something like "state of a person who has the instincts of an animal", used on the review in order to describe the savage side of the album.

In the figurative sense, it indeed means what you have wrote above.

So, as you can easily understand, this second sense has nothing to do with the review
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28.06.2010 - 18:56
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
Staff
Good call, apparently my mind goes directly in the gutter when reading such words.

As for when I first heard about this band/album: 2009 MS Awards. In my opinion it was one of the better thrash releases, and I'm glad I took a chance on giving them a listen. I'd probably give them between 7.5 and 7.7 myself, more or less for the same reasons given in your review. Good work!
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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28.06.2010 - 19:09
White Winter Sun
Laboratory's Rat
Elite
Written by Troy Killjoy on 28.06.2010 at 18:56

Good call, apparently my mind goes directly in the gutter when reading such words.

As for when I first heard about this band/album: 2009 MS Awards. In my opinion it was one of the better thrash releases, and I'm glad I took a chance on giving them a listen. I'd probably give them between 7.5 and 7.7 myself, more or less for the same reasons given in your review. Good work!

Yes it was one among the best thrash metal releases from the year 2009 alongside Cult Of Sin (from After All), Disfigure (from Anger As Art), Insurrection Rising (from Savage Messiah) or Sanctify The Darkness (from Suicidal Angels) just to name a few of them.

Also cool to see that you share my point of view on this album
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28.06.2010 - 19:21
!J.O.O.E.!
Account deleted
Written by Troy Killjoy on 28.06.2010 at 18:56

I'd probably give them between 7.5 and 7.7 myself

So 7.6 then =p
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28.06.2010 - 20:32
Deadsoulman
Elite
This album gets better with time but it still pales in comparison with Haatland, which was a devastating album. This one falls short of being awesome, mainly because the songwriting is much less memorable. At times it sounds like Dead Head on autopilot. A good album nonetheless but a bit disappointing considering how cool the previous one was.
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28.06.2010 - 20:34
Marcel Hubregtse
Grumpy Old Fuck
Elite
Written by Deadsoulman on 28.06.2010 at 20:32

This album gets better with time but it still pales in comparison with Haatland, which was a devastating album. This one falls short of being awesome, mainly because the songwriting is much less memorable. At times it sounds like Dead Head on autopilot. A good album nonetheless but a bit disappointing considering how cool the previous one was.


Totally agreed. This one is more in ine with their old albums from before Haatland. Haatland is imo their best by far.
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Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal

Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight
Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.)
05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996

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29.06.2010 - 18:43
White Winter Sun
Laboratory's Rat
Elite
Written by Deadsoulman on 28.06.2010 at 20:32

This album gets better with time but it still pales in comparison with Haatland, which was a devastating album. This one falls short of being awesome, mainly because the songwriting is much less memorable. At times it sounds like Dead Head on autopilot. A good album nonetheless but a bit disappointing considering how cool the previous one was.


Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 28.06.2010 at 20:34

Totally agreed. This one is more in ine with their old albums from before Haatland. Haatland is imo their best by far.


Just listened to Haatland. Indeed it's even better than this one. Thanks for the advice, I didn't regret the listening.
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04.07.2010 - 23:51
Daggon
Underpaid M.D.
Even if this album was nominated as one of the best thrash albums of 2009 here in MS, I think it's not as good as other 2009 releases, but hey, it wasn't bad at all (quite generic at times), sadly, it didn't grew on me as other major releases from 2009 like the ones from Sacrifice, Gama Bomb, Hirax and Warbringer.

It's one of those albums that you know the fans probably will like it, but in the end you know that the band just tried to achieve the same sound of their last album without adding something new to their sound after four years. Still it's worth listening, THIS is thrash metal!
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"Les vers savent qu'ils n'ont pas d'ailes, c'est pour cela qu'ils se cachent sous terre"
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