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VIOLATOR
Unholy Retribution

Kill Again (2025)
Rating: 7.5/10

With only their third full-length studio album in 23 years, Brazilian thrashers Violator remain reasonably steady in line-up and sound considering the last album, Scenarios Of Brutality, was 12 years ago.

Still reeling from the let down of Dark Angel’s comeback album (Extinction Level Event), Unholy Retribution was most certainly the fix I required. Very much entrenched in old school thrash ethics, Violator’s latest effort is born through the tirade known as ‘Hang The Merchants Of Illusion’, a vicious mid-to-late 80s style of thrash with a crossover vibe to the vocals of bassist Poney Ret Crucifier.

The quartet can’t help but nod towards Slayer at times while also providing a thrashy Death-style of aggression, but with each song there are obvious 80s thrash influences. My only real gripe is that although the album runs for a tidy 41 minutes, a couple of tracks do drag on a bit too long, case in point being ‘Vengeance Storm’ (over six minutes), ‘Rot In Hell’ (over five minutes), ‘Persecution Personality’ (over five minutes) and ‘The Evil Order’ (over five minutes).

All of these should have been trimmed, although let’s not detract from the fact that they are good songs, but the shorter blast of ‘Chapel Of The Sick’ with its historical lyrical sway, is a gem. “Born in chains, Colonized! See your land, Occupied! Time to retrieve, Time to regain, Time to resist, Time for revenge!” spits Poney (aka Pedro Arcanjo) over a punchy drum gallop from chief skinsman Batera Bone Crusher (aka David Araya). It’s standard thrash but executed with that vim of nostalgic underground aggression which so many contemporary artists seem to exclude for the sake of soulless gloss. “Arising from the depths of hell to sacrifice the weak, the cult of love has perished in a killing spree,” foams Poney on ‘Cult Of Death’. The structures are not necessarily raw but they do have a ferocious energy without causing forgettable bursts.

Arguably darker than previous efforts, Unholy Retribution feels like a more rounded outing as well, a marked improvement as the clan builds clarity within its aggressive frameworks. I like the way so many of the songs introduce themselves as well; ‘The Evil Order’ drips with an ominous trudge, ‘Rot In Hell’ boasts a chaotic Slayer-styled intro, as does ‘Persecution Personality’ but with a more measured approach.

Unholy Retribution is just a very good thrash record that in spite of being forged in the depths of the South American underground, maintains an edge that wouldn’t seem out of place on the L.A. scene. And for those Dark Angel fans who expected another Darkness Descends (1986) from the devastatingly poor return, you just might find what you’re looking for with Violator.

Neil Arnold

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