Review by Felix on November 21, 2021.

Does anybody know why Exodus always have shitty artworks? It began with Fabulous Disaster and with regard to the cover of Blood In, Blood Out, there seems to be no end in sight. Impact Is Imminent does not represent an exception; guess it's time to describe the music, isn't it? First off, the fourth full-length of Gary Holt's wrecking crew is much more metal than its predecessor. Half-baked fillers like 'Low Rider' are unimaginable in the context of this album which does not suffer from any needless cover version. Impact Is Imminent is pure thrash.

Right from the beginning, Holt and Hunolt swing the axes if there is no tomorrow. John Tempesta, who has replaced Tom Hunting behind the drums, spares the costs for the fitness studio while maltreating his kit in a furious manner. Exodus are not suspected of choosing a lukewarm approach only because of the fact that the album is released by the company giant EMI / Capitol. With the obstinate behaviour of untouchable fanatics, they use their entire arsenal of thrash weapons. Too bad that the production is a rather harmless weapon. On the one hand, it creates a dense and fairly sinister atmosphere due to its comparatively dull mix. Even 'The Lunatic Parade', which provides - in hindsight - the predictable link between 'The Toxic Waltz' and 'Blacklist', does not show a relatively funny side of the band. On the other hand, the sound lacks of differentiation and clarity. Sharp riffs are usually the feature that shapes thrash albums. But Impact Is Imminent follows another strategy and attacks the listener in a clunky yet very vehement manner.

Due to the increased share of thrashing components, Holt and his escorts have the element of surprise on their side. The unexpected brutality of the opening title track is a breathtaking beacon for the audience. Of course, the band does not only focus on sheer velocity, but the number of high speed parts is a clear statement. Apart from the cynical opener, I could list the rapid ending of 'Heads They Win (Tails You Lose)' in this context as well as the last two songs of the album. 'Changing Of The Guard' is one of these two pieces. It touches my Teutonic heart, because its lyrics deal with the end of the Cold War and the fall of the Berlin Wall. But the lyrics are not solely correlated to the reunification of Germany. Ceaucescu, the last dictator of Romania, and his likewise criminal wife are also expressly mentioned. "With their execution, so ends the tyranny / Two bullets from a rifle set the people free" - this sounds easy, but it took much more to change the situation in Europe. However, it has changed and that's the main thing. 'Thrash Under Pressure', the closer of the album, does not think about politics. This anthem to the sub genre is just an intensive eruption of high velocity. Well done, although I regret that its playtime of two and a half minutes is too short.

Nevertheless, my personal favourite is not among the fast-paced songs. The riffing of 'Only Death Decides' makes this mid-tempo bulldozer to a devastating giant. Don't be irritated by the less rapid approach. It does not mean that Exodus are willing to offer a less violent tune and lines like "Misery, disaster, catastrophe / Exactly how you knew the end would be" underline their intention. The riffs draw the listener into the song in a matter of seconds and confront him with the devastating summary of his useless life. No doubt, this track is a sonic authority. 'Within The Walls Of Chaos' does not fully achieve the quality level of 'Only Death Decides', but its riffs drag across the floor in a hurtful manner. Without question, this track is also impressive due to its epic configuration.

Perhaps it is an exaggeration to say that each and every piece of Impact Is Imminent develops its unmistakeable facets. They rather stand shoulder to shoulder like uniformed members of a successful sports team during a photo shooting. And just like real athletes, they are bursting with strength. I would have never imagined that such an album could be followed by a lame duck, but Force Of Habit proved the opposite. Anyway, let's close the cycle. At the beginning of the review, I mentioned the bad covers of Exodus albums, but the back of the CD version takes the bun. It is identical to that of the vinyl edition with the effect that the printed lyrics look like the excrements of a fly that has suffered from diarrhoea. Bad luck for the CD generation.

Rating: 8.7 out of 10

Review by Elijah on March 10, 2020.

I really want to call this my favorite classic Exodus album, but I just can't, sadly. Among my first listening of Exodus, I was super into this album's sound and style, specifically the first three songs and nothing else. This album has the best instrumental sound out of all their 80's albums in my opinion; the guitars have a thick, slightly groovish, sort of "electric" feel type of sound going on, and the snare is kinda clanky while still remaining softish and solid. I really love how everything sounds on this album, that's why I value this over the others; mostly because of the sound of the instruments.

The best parts (and pretty much the only parts that have worth) are the first three tracks. The title track 'Impact is Imminent' starts off with an energy-filled bouncy riff that gets you moving, with a great skank beat behind it, couldn't be better. 'A.W.O.L.' opens with a swift riff that's similar to a triplet pattern, followed by a backbone of a drum beat to carry it along and give it some personality. 'The Lunatic Parade' is slower and not as great as the first two tracks, but it's still a great song and is one of the tracks that's again, worth your time. It's a down-tempo song, and even if it lacks riffs that aren’t exactly as good as the first two tracks, it's still great. The song actually goes somewhere and keeps you entertained until it ends. 'The Lunatic Parade' has some personality, despite the lack of riffs, that's the issue with this album. An awesome instrumental sound taken advantage by lackluster songwriting.

After the first three tracks I'm pretty much forcing myself to listen to the rest of the album. It doesn't capture my attention as good as the first three songs did; the songs after track 3 don't go anywhere, the songwriting is bland and has no personality. Compared to the first three songs, the rest of the album ain't anything special at all. It really saddens me that this album has such great potential but the potential is pushed aside due to bland, uncreative, dead-end songwriting. I've listened to this album in its entirety before, but I don’t even remember it really, today I listened to all of it properly; and I wasn't all that thrilled by anything I hadn't heard before.

Wish I could call this my favorite classic Exodus record. In my head it's always been my favorite even though I'm only fond of three songs. I still like this album but don't really give a fuck about anything that isn’t 'Impact is Imminent', 'A.W.O.L.', or 'The Lunatic Parade'. The cover art is cool though, that's a big contributing factor as to why I have an artistic appeal towards this album, but aside from the first three tracks and the cover art, nothing is of much worth here. I prefer the 2000's- modern era Exodus anyways.

I'd definitely wear this on a shirt, I love the cover art, but you'll never see me listening to anything other than the first three songs.

Rating: 6.7 out of 10