Label: Art Gates Records
Date: December 18th, 2020
A year or two ago if you asked me about Spanish metal scene I could count on the fingers of one hand. As we started cooperation with Art Gates Records, my knowledge of the Spanish metal scene has grown so I can say that I am close to the title of expert in this field.
One of the bands I got into through this collaboration with AGR is Injector. Formed in Cartagena in 2012, thrash metal quartet has delivered one EP (“Harmony of Chaos”), two albums (“Black Genesis” and “Stone Prevails”). They marched out of the 2020 with their third album “Hunt of the Rawhead”.
Bright colored album art designed by Enrique Garcia Morales with a very dark message was good enough to push the play button and… In short lines, Injector are European Bay Area influenced thrash metal band. Injector strikes with “March to Kill”, the song that announced the new album back in November 2020. What stands out, not only in this song, but on the whole album, are melodic riffs and obviously Mark Osegueda’s influenced singing style. “Unborn Legions” might be my favorite with constant flirting of thrash and heavy metal. The next one “Into the Black” begins with an impressive bass line which flows into crashing drums rhythm and bit slower tempo. The chorus is very melodic and catchy. “Dreadnought Race” brings the aggression back. This song is exactly what defines the band and their sphere of interest, at least if we are talking about the lyrics. Injector continues to cover the theme of war in the next song “Rhythm of War”, the longest song of the album, close to 8 minutes. Not so typical for thrash metal, but… “Arcane Soul” is playing with our heart beats, going from slow to devastating fast parts. “Feed the Monster” is the perfect candidate for the mosh pits, once we all get back to the concerts. In instrumental “Interstellar Minds”, again, Injector continue to mix, this time electric and acoustic instruments. You might think Injector left slow pace instrumental as an album closer, but they will break your bones unexpectedly in “Boundbreaker” that closes chapter number three in their career.
Despite definitions and the common opinion that trash metal abounds in aggression and fast tempo, I would say the guys from Injector are moderately aggressive, more melodic, technically at a very high level. Aggressive in singing approach, slightly flirting with new metal in “Into the Black”, melodic in playing style and technically superior in guitar solos might be the main guidelines for potential fans.
Compared with the previous releases, Injector seems to have progressed and have found the perfect measure of aggression and melody.
For the beginning of the year Injector injected me with the appropriate dose of thrash metal. The best young and fresh thrash metal band I have heard in recent times. In the world of rawheads, I hope the hunt will end successfully.
