Bloodletter – Malignancy Review

Fast Rites: because sometimes brevity is fundamental.

“Resist my rule and meet my axe!”

That line from “Skullsplitter” might as well be Bloodletter’s motto moving forward. Partying or railing against societal ills is all well and good in thrash, but sometimes you just want dark fantasy to rule the roost. Malignancy is a re-recorded 5-song EP that attacks thrash from a surprising multitude of angles in its brief 13 minutes.

Crows squawking and bells tolling open the door to the first sweet riff on “In These Ruined Halls…Reputation For Cruelty” and it’s only a brief taste of what’s to come. “Blackest Mass” fires off a modern-era Metallica riff that doesn’t actually suck and hits a strong breakdown late before letting the guitars off the leash to really gallop and run. The aforementioned “Skullsplitter” is driven by pure blackened malice while it sprints for your throat and “Poisonous Affair” is a blast-happy minute of nearly grind-tinged thrashing goodness.

The title track certainly earns its place as a namesake by closing the release on its strongest note. There’s an excellent divebomb intro that segues into an absolutely killer riff that would fit right at home on Nightmare Logic. Around the two-minute mark, the song creates open space for a phenomenal lead to take charge and that sharply cuts into a massive breakdown guaranteed to start some violent pits.

Malignancy may be a short re-recording of older material, but that just means you have plenty of fresher content to dig into if you enjoy it. I know I will be!