Review by Felix on May 12, 2024.

Shame on you, owners of metal labels worldwide. Yes, I mean you all. Why did none of you realize the quality of World Decay, a new thrash entity from Belgium? Okay, the stereotyped artwork may not really invite the listener to give the material a chance, but if you're not even supposed to judge a book by its cover, then certainly not such a phantom digital publication as well. Instead, let’s jump head first into the boiling broth that Unholy Sacrifice dishes up.

First things first, the quintet cannot be blamed for half-heartedness, tepidity or disorientation. World Decay swing the cutting, rasping, sawing, hurting and screaming guitars that raw yet pure thrash asks for. The venom in the voice of the lead vocalist is the perfect complement to this guitar approach. If my old heroes from Violent Force were still active, they could sound similar to World Decay today. But perhaps some of you need a more modern point of reference. To those it is said that the full-length spreads the violent, snotty and technically precise vibes we experienced on Terrifier’s masterpiece “Weapons Of Thrash Destruction”. This means that melodies are definitely not in the focus of the newcomers, but high velocity, straight verses and pretty cool choruses. Maybe this is the work Brian Zimmerman wanted to record when he decided to release an Atrophy comeback album? Anyway, the band lives up to its motto “no nonsense, fast & heavy”. By the way, the lack of comical elements separates them from bands like Gama Bomb, while some of the guitar leads could well have come from “The Terror Tapes” of the Irish jesters. World Decay do not start a musical revolution, but if you want to play or to listen to thrash, you have to adapt to the style, not the other way round. If you want to invent something new, you can play meditative free jazz on a flute that you blow into with your left nostril. But to me it makes more sense to stay true to the real thing, old school thrash metal. However, Unholy Sacrifice does not sound old, stale or moldy. It can rely on a powerful, direct and wrathful production whose explosiveness is impressive. No doubt, this album wants to be heard and it has to be heard. The collection of thrashing jewels is too good to fall on deaf ears. 'Slow And Painful' is among the first songs that keep sticking in my constantly rotting brain. Mid-tempo, a sustainable chorus and a rapid, highly dynamic instrumental section with a great solo form a deadly weapon. I've never heard Lääz Rockit in musical hate speech mode, but that's what they might have sounded like. Dynamic is an outstanding trait of the album, the infectious 'Descending Into Madness' and many other songs demonstrate this in a stirring manner. Where veterans like Testament fall victim to their own professional routine from time to time, World Decay just runs over all barricades. And even though they do not present innovative features, they have enough courage to start the album with a rather mid-paced track with ingenious riffs instead of using the fastest track as opener. You see, they do not shy away from breaking with old clichés, although they cherish thrash traditions in general.

Naturally, there are a few tracks that leave little room for improvement, but that’s a matter of personal taste and truly serious deficiencies do not show. Unholy Sacrifice is nothing less than a very strong, compact, mature and authentic collection of fiery, thrashing outbursts. Maybe even the guys in the metal industry will understand this one day. And if they just want to press a limited edition: please consider that I want to buy a copy.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10