Annihilator-Metal

Year: 2007
Record Label: Riot
Track Listing:
01. Clown Parade
02. Couple Suicide
03. Army Of One
04. Downright Dominate
05. Smothered
06. Operation Annihilation
07. Haunted
08. Kicked
09. Detonation
10. Chasing The High

Annihilator formed over sixteen years ago, and in that time they have given fans exactly what they wanted and established themselves as one of the biggest Thrash Metal exports from Canada.
Unfortunately they seem to have faltered on this album. Although they have brought in some big guns that include Jeff Loomis from Nevermore, Angela Gossow from Arch Enemy, and Alex Laiho of Children of Bodom this is not a thrash metal album by far.
While the effort is there, and the guitar solos are amazing, the tracks are too slow and they come across as more hard rock rather than thrash metal. There is almost a radio-friendly atmosphere to the music, which fans of the band will not be happy with.

One of the biggest problems for the band may be their lead singer Dave Padden, who comes across as more Nu-Metal then Thrash Metal and his attempts to be anything other than Nu tend to fail.
That’s not saying he doesn’t have a great voice, as he does but just not for the particular genre that Annihilator are categorized as. He does not produce the right amount of oomph that fans expect from Annihilator.
Another failing factor is songs such as “Clown Parade” are just horrendously performed. For one teaming Danko Jones rock vocals with the growling backing vocals of Angela Gossow is cringe-worthy. The two are so completely unsuitable that it leaves one scratching their head as to what exactly Annihilator’s Jeff Waters was attempting to succeed by this.
The idea of bringing in stellar guests to perform was a brilliant one that just turned out badly.

There is no doubt about the talents of each of the guest performers but the production just seems all over the place. If you want to buy a real thrash album by Annihilator then go get “Alice In Hell” rather than this poor attempt.

Rating: H
You can buy Metal here
Annihilator's Official Website