Space Chaser – Give Us Life
Release Date: 16th July 2021
Label: Metal Blade Records
Pre-Order
Genre: Thrash
FFO: Anthrax, Testament, Overkill, Havok, Artillery.
Review By: Ian Sky
Opening statements: As the cover of ‘Give Us Life‘ caught my eye, I do believe we should start there… It looks like the Japanese variant cover of the 1983 movie ‘Exterminators From The Year 3000‘ and akin to the entirety of Space Chaser‘s third full-length release, there is a lot goin’ on here! As the album starts (and continues) you can audibly tell that the band has taken quite a bit of pharmaceutical speed while listening to Anthrax… but lead singer, Siegfried Rudzynski, sounds suspiciously as if he wishes he had started an Iron Maiden cover band. (Just one man’s opinion.) All in all, Space Chaser‘s new release would make the ward, Robin say something like, “Holy Thrash attack, Batman!”
As Give Us Life continues, the music remains solid Thrash Metal. Guitarists, Leo Schacht and Martin Hochsattel work quite well together whilst working their way through each track’s respective cascade of shred! Matthias Scheuerer‘s drumming is of primetime caliber, the variation and skill he displays are fucking immaculate! Dude really knows what he’s doing there and his subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) rolls and accents play fantastically against the strings. I do feel like Sebastian Kerlikowski‘s bass effort could play a more dynamic role in the mix. And the tone of the bass tracks unfortunately reminds me first of Korn. Don’t get me wrong, it’s much better bass playing than that and played more than well enough but there’s just something slightly off about it. The vocals also seem to bite off a bit more than they can smoothly chew at times. And the backing vocals would have benefited, from a production standpoint, if they had been both cleaner and louder. As they seem so recessed, the lead vocals really steamroll over them thus making even simple lyrics sound muddled and more difficult to discern.
Cross examination: The album loses some of its variety in the first few songs and by the time we get to A.O.A. it seems like we’ve been listening to the same song for a while. Beyond that, as a general rule, you should only abbreviate song titles if your record company or the country in which your record is released demands some sort of bullshit censorship (A disgusting practice whether administered by one, the other or both.) Instead it seems to me like they were just embarrassed by a song called “Army Of Awesomeness“. Continuing on we are presented with ‘The Immortals‘. A track which seems to want to establish itself to one of the few optimistic points of the album, lyrics-wise, in its attempt to inspire the human race to become what the title suggests. However, it expects so much of the albums lyrical protagonists (and our species) as a whole, and is so radical a departure from the rest of the album’s “never ending nightmare” that it seems contradictory to most of the other tracks.
Closing arguments: And now, for the thrilling conclusion of Space Chaser‘s latest Cosmic Thrash adventure… Give Us Life!
The best showings of Space Chaser‘s capabilities are displayed rather well on the second half of the album. The songs even seem to hang together better in relation to each other and give a stronger showing of skill and execution. Siegfried Rudzynski‘s voice also sounds way more on point! It’s not that he’s putting in any more or less effort, his vocals just fit the music better, as do the group’s backing vocals, both in execution and production. Even the music fits the music better! The brilliant influences shine through and I can hear what could be shades of Kreator, Artillery, Overkill, SLAYER, Morbid Angel, Old Man’s Child, Cannibal Corpse and Death!
Verdict: Although Thrash Metal is generally more down to earth, Space Chaser‘s latest release is decidedly potent Thrash Metal, particularly the back half of the album. And although something about Give Us Life is still just slightly off, I did enjoy it a bit more than I thought I would. And despite what I feel were shortcomings, I can’t fault the musicianship. I just think that a better overall job could’ve been done vis a vis the lyrics, arrangement and production. Nonetheless, it is a pretty fuckin’ solid album!
Additional: I will also admit that I was wholly unfamiliar with Space Chaser. So, after listening to Give Us Life, I was curious enough to look up their earlier releases. I was incredibly impressed by Watch The Skies and suggest that anyone who enjoyed Give Us Life should give their earlier work its day in court! And… I feel like I should unequivocally state that it would only be to their benefit should they go back to their old production methods.
(3.5 / 5)
