01. Dig Your Own Grave
02. Dead In The Water
03. Sanctified In Scars
04. Strike And Kill
05. In The Moonlight
06. Ride Or Die
07. Headed For The Fall
08. Shut The Silence On
09. Never Coming Home
10. Summoning Shadows
11. You're Just A Ghost
12. Oath of Iron
13. All Bets Are Off

Can the devil drive manual?

The last decade and a half hasn't been a particularly fortuitous one for DevilDriver, seeing their fortunes and creative spark dwindle while the classic lineup crumbles around them, after several breakout years that saw them force their way to the forefront of the metal scene. As a result, the level of fanfare and hype surrounding recent albums has noticeably dipped, even as the last two albums have seen the band right course; Strike And Kill is perhaps the first record in a long time that has the long-missing spark it takes to flame and burn bright like a beacon to entice metalheads back.

With the pre-album-release single "Dead In The Water" sounding as a clarion call for both lapsed fans and those who had yet to listen to the band, Strike And Kill announced itself with one of the strongest tracks in the band's entire discography, brimming with power and vitality. Thankfully, this quality is carried over onto the rest of the record, producing an album that ranks amongst the band's strongest work; certainly its best for many a year.

With tracks like "Ride Or Die" and "Oath Of Iron", Strike And Kill delivers on the threat of its title, taking a sharp U-turn on the narrative that DevilDriver are a band on a continuous decline. While I have been in the minority with the prior two demon albums and found them to have been decent enough, Strike And Kill takes things to a whole different level and one that is likely to find a much wider receptive audience, to the point that if you have skipped out on the band, this is the perfect re-entry point for you.

On record at least, Fafara seems none the worse after his battle with Covid, continuing to sound as powerful and vital as before, surprising me when I discovered he is sixty and can put in a performance like the one he does on "Headed For The Fall". With the rest of the band now bedded in as a cohesive unit after several years together, they are perhaps the best lineup since the classic one of the band's early years, with the likes of Pérez putting in excellent performances on the likes of "Shut The Silence On", which nails the groove thrash sound.

At fifty minutes, however, DevilDriver do overextend themselves and as a result several weaker cuts appear on Strike And Kill that I could have done without. "In The Moonlight" and "Never Coming Home" highlight the dual issue facing this album, with the former having good ideas that could have used some more work on them, while the latter feels like a B-side that could have been left on the cutting room floor ("Summoning Shadows" should have been left behind). With some editing, Strike And Kill could have been the short, sharp shock that fans needed; as it is, it is still a solid album, but a bloated one.

Strike And Kill has purpose and power, something the band has lacked for too long; heralding fans old and new, Strike And Kill is a turning point that should see fans jump (back) in and let the devil take the wheel once more.

Performance:	8
Songwriting:	7
Originality:	6
Production:	8