A number of releases this year have forced me to reevaluate my opinions on thrash metal. Zeicrydeus, Species, and Hexecutor (more on that one come AOTY season very soon) to name a few… and how about that new Testament album? Adding to the list are Indianapolis black thrashers Graveripper and their sophomore album From Welkin to Tundra. In opposition to many other practitioners of this genre combo Graveripper promise an emphasis on the black metal part (as if the title and gloomy Adam Burke art wasn’t enough of a hint), and they do indeed deliver.

Setting the stage in appropriately blackened fashion is instrumental “Welkin, Now Tundra.” Not dungeon synth-styled keyboards, but big drums and bigger chords that transition right into “Bring Upon the Pain”; a d-beat-heavy thrashfest occasionally interrupted by some trem picks that hint at what the rest of the album has to offer. It’s not until first single “Hexenhammer” comes along that the avowed black metal makes itself known with its blast beats and melancholic wall of chords ripped straight out of ’90s Norway, and a “Black Wizards”-esque melody (punctuated by chunky palm-mutes). Bands doing similar genre combos sometimes end up with songwriting that is just “genre A – genre B – genre A again” without much real connective tissue, but Graveripper do a pretty good job of fusing the two; namely thrashier drum beats backing blackened riffs, or tossing some blast beats and tremolo picking into a thrash riff.

If you’re already familiar with black/thrash it’s unlikely you’ll find anything groundbreaking on From Welkin to Tundra, but that doesn’t mean it’s completely without surprises. One of my favorite moments comes on “Sanctioned Slaughter” in the form of a melodic alternating note riff that instantly reminded me of “Divine Right” from Marrow of Man’s debut last year… high praise considering I loved that album so much! “Hounds of Hell” is a blistering thrash attack that doesn’t stop, ramping up to furious blast beats before a brief respite in the form of black metal chords and a shredding guitar solo. Longest track “Bullet Laden Crown” (coming in at four and a half minutes) gives the bass a more prominent role, mirroring the guitars on an eerie blackened riff that takes up most of the song’s second half.

From Welkin to Tundra doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but upholds its promise of truly black/thrash metal with its appropriately executed fusion of the two genres. Rumbling bass, punchy drums, and guitars that bite with both ice and steel make for an album as fun as it is dreary; bringing the listener back to the days when the line between the genres was much blurrier, yet in a fashion befitting a modern interpretation of the two.

— Colin

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From Welkin to Tundra will be available October 17 through Wise Blood Records. For more information on Graveripper, check out their Facebook and Instagram pages.