When Rezet´s most recent album Truth in Between effectively turned out to be a commercial non-starter due to a certain virus, northern Germany´s finest in thrash quickly had to separate the wheat from the chaff… albeit not so much voluntarily as out of necessity.
After amicably separating from guitarist Heiko Musolf and bass player Bjarne Otto, main composer, guitarist and singer Ricky Wagner shortly wondered whether he should put the band to rest but then decided differently. Contrarily, he set out to leave nothing to coincidence any more, opting for a “no compromise” and do-it-yourself approach by continuing Rezet without label-support for the time being.
This resolve triggered a burst of creativity, resulting in New World Murder, a four-track EP both revisiting the group´s roots as well as hinting towards a brighter future. Wagner and drummer Bastian “attt” Santen recruited four-stringer Lorenz Kandolf and second guitarist Jan-Erik Fischer to self-record three new songs as well as a flamboyant cover of Deep Purple´s proto metal classic ´Fireball´.
The material was then mixed and mastered by the band´s trusted sound engineer Eike Freese (amongst others Heaven Shall Burn, Helloween and, indeed, Deep Purple), with ´The Devil´s Bride´ being a perfect opener, blending acute Motörhead vibes with Ricky´s charismatic snarl and an almost Annihilator-esque playfulness, highlight the razor-sharp precision of Rezet´s new line-up.
The rhythmically diverse, subtly melodic ´Dead End Walking´ is barbed with one of the catchiest riffs you may hear in 2022 and topped of by an atmospheric instrumental bridge whereas staccato earworm ´Alien Noises´ – featuring guest vocals by none other than German thrash pioneers Destruction´s front man Schmier – hits home even faster and will grace the soundtrack of the movie “Total Thrash”.
So there you have it: four smashers that sounds unpredictable and familiar alike, reflecting Ricky´s hands-on attitude. “In a way,” he concludes, “I see New World Murder in the spirit of Metallica, who also keep setting new goals for themselves, shedding their skin on a constant basis. Eventually, we reclaimed our joy in what we do simply by doing what we love without fulfilling expectations.”
Old is the new New – so watch out and perk your ears for “The Great Rezet”!
