Brought By God's Own Might

With the Christian thrash band Believer coming out of obscurity and releasing a new album "Gabriel" I thought I would take a look at some of their earlier work. Believer debuted with the thrash masterpiece that is "Extraction From Mortality".

Released in 1989 "Extraction From Mortality" was by no means breaking new ground except perhaps by being a Christian band. Carving a niche with fellow Christian bands like Vengeance Rising and Deliverance, Believer took their faith to the stage with a foundation of raw technical thrash garnering glowing reviews both secular and non-secular.

"Extraction From Mortality" is not as technical as "Sanity Obscure" or progressive as "Dimensions", but is a slab of speedy, crunchy riffs, thunderous drums and sickening vocals. Kicking off the album is "Unity" which after a short intro is a blistering thrash assault. "Vile Hypocrisy" continues the onslaught, pacing well with variant tempos and crushing riffs.

In fact, "Extraction From Mortality" is a 40 minute pummelling with little room to breath. "D.O.S. (Desolation Of Sodom)" adds a little groove to the mix with a fairly mid-paced rhythm and the album closer "Stress" is essentially a reggae thrash tune, ska-like with a punk attitude.

"Shadow Of Death" is darker tune with a bleaker feel and "Blemished Sacrifices" brings to mind "Ride The Lightning" era Metallica and is one the fastest songs here with some killer riffs. The title track hints at what is to come with a haunting orchestral intro before pounding us with a speedy crunch and gang style chorus's.

There is really not much to dislike about this album and finding a favourite song is tough. It's a toss up between "Shadow Of Death" and "Blemished Sacrifices" for me. The vocals leave something to be desired and are reminiscent of mid-period Living Sacrifice though slightly more discernible. Not terrible, but not really to my liking.

Overall, this is a solid release and an outstanding debut. Up next I'll take a look at "Sanity Obscured".