Band:	After All
Album:	This Violent Decline
Style:	Thrash metal
Release date:	2006
A review by:	Jeff

01. Frozen Skin
02. Violente Decline (Drawn To The Devil)
03. Blackest Moon
04. Sacraments For The Damned
05. Without Reason
06. Monolith # 11
07. Ruins Of Bones
08. To Haunt You
09. The Harlot
10. Blind Euphoria 2006
11. Second Time Around
+ Frozen Skin [bonus] [video]

"This Violent Decline" is the last album of the Belgian thrashers of After All. This band uses to play a Thrash Metal which is near to be similar to the one of Metallica and Megadeth when the two bands started to do something more melodic than aggressive ("Black Album", "Countdown To Extinction"?). Evidently, this lack of "aggressions" doesn't mean that the music of After All is bad and boring but you just have to know that you'll not listen to something similar to Slayer, Exodus or Kreator? it's Heavy-Thrash Metal here!

"This Violent Decline" is an album of Thrash Metal so, of course, you'll be able to listen to big riffs and (in general) fast frenetic tempos. But "This Violent Decline" doesn't have the "punk-attitude" that we can find in Exodus' albums for example. Actually, the guys just chose to do melodic music before "violent" stuff and it's not a real problem if you're not allergic to Thrash which is not so far away of Heavy Metal. Plus the voice of the singer is not aggressive, well a bit of course it's not Stratovarius, but it's more like the one of Hetfield instead of the one of Araya on "Reign In Blood".

When it comes to the songs, the whole album is composed of a lot of good ones even if I didn't find real mega hits too. "Frozen Skin" can be a good example to describe the whole album. We have a good catchy melody, some good powerful drums, good clean guitars soli a bit in the Maiden spirit (which is not bad! but not so "thrashy" in the spirit) and those "soft" Thrash vocals. It's good to listen to it but it's not something that will slap your face too. I just regret that sometime the albums lacks a bit of energy. When I listen to Thrash Metal I like to feel this revolutionary spirit that we were able to find in the releases of the 80's. But it doesn't mean that it is not good to listen to "This Violent Decline" because it's cool at the opposite but sometime it's a bit too much conventional and nice if you see what I mean. On the other hand, if you like Heavy-Thrash Metal, that's clearly different and this album is a great release in this particular style

Without being outstanding, "This Violent Decline" is however a really pleasant album of Thrash Metal. Of course don't forget that it's something more melodic and "Heavy Metal" in the style than anything else but if you like this kind of Thrash, I'm sure that you'll be able to enjoy the album which is composed of nice good songs. After All is a good band and their last album "This Violent Decline" just confirms the quality of the combo? try to remember their name, they're becoming something?