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SODOM
The Arsonist

Steamhammer / SPV (2025)
Rating: 8/10

With their latest full-length studio outing, German thrash veterans Sodom reel off another volatile yet somewhat predictable batch of heavily armed and armoured songs.

Like fellow countrymen Destruction, Sodom has remained unflinching with their catalogue, gradually over time shifting from a primitive thrash streaked with blackness through to a far more refined gloss. Their war-torn belligerence has remained consistent if a little uninspiring over the last 20 or so years, but every time I revisit their catalogue it’s still like being hit by a bulldozer. The Arsonist is no different; it seethes like a pack of rabid wolves, snapping viciously as they corner the listener to a soundtrack of monstrously metallic riffs and lethal shards of percussion.

There are no surprises hidden within the precise formation of imposing tanks. The songs are delivered with the same military precision we, as fans, have come to expect. However, there are still nods to ye days of yore, mostly through Tom Angelripper’s rust-coated pipes and Frank Blackfire’s destructive riffs.

Sodom is just that eternal grinding machine that revels in the smouldering spoils of war. Their current sound is epitomised by the missile strikes of ‘Battle Of Harvest Moon’ and the even more combative yet Slayer-ized ‘Trigger Discipline’. The riffs dance through landmines for fun as Tom Angelripper commands his troops to march into enemy gunfire, knowing full well that the rolling bass can just bat away the bullets with ease. York Segatz’s axe work teams up with Blackfire to construct a formidable frontline of fiery, streamlined walls of steel.

It’s always interesting to observe the Sodom plan of attack; no thrills but to the point, it’s only aim being to mow down the audience. Admittedly, over the years I have been frustrated by the band’s unwavering style, a stubborn and immovable force of nature, but now, in their fourth decade of existence, I’m mature enough (I think!) to reflect on this literal powerhouse of a band and stand in awe beneath leaden skies they pollute.

And so, The Arsonist is another ferocious feather in their rugged metal cap, a surging beast of a record that reminds me a lot of the more recent Slayer outbursts; crisp yet frashin’ madness but with suspenseful intros (‘Twilight Void’). In fact, ‘Twilight Void’ is one the strongest cuts on offer, building to a mid-paced and grisly black thrash traipse before exploding as a frantic retaliatory strike. ‘Gun Without Groom’ is equally as volatile, but littered with jabbing rhythms through the veil of grey menace.

There’s such a freshness and vigour here, the quartet just refusing to dip in quality as the spits rain down with acidic aplomb. Much of what is offered here is akin to a shrapnel-laced tornado, with the only respite being the snarling trudge of ‘Scavenger’. It could be argued that much of The Arsonist is formualic, but it’s not as if, after 40 years, that Sodom has ever promised progressive funk jazz fusion.

With The Arsonist and every album previous, Sodom just wants you there in the trenches with them. Songs like ‘Sane Insanity’ and ‘Obliteration Of The Aeons’ rage hard as exemplary thrash workouts of razor tongue and steaming riffs. Throughout this opus you’ll also find a splattering of zany solos which thread into your ears and hook into your already charred brain. Only the coming of Armageddon could surely cease the tireless onslaught of Sodom, but even then I’d hedge my bets towards a win for the German dogs of war.

Neil Arnold

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