Review by Dominik on July 21, 2026.

I received this album as a birthday present. Which immediately puts me in a morally complicated position, because both German and English have the same wonderful proverb: "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth!". I'll spare you the historical background involving equine dentistry, medieval etiquette, and the apparently eternal human fascination with inspecting animals before accepting them. The meaning, however, is simple: do not criticize or scrutinize something you have received for free.

Well… sorry, horse. Open wide.
There is not a lot to complain about on Cruel Force's latest offering "Haneda". But scrutinize it I shall, because despite the almost universally enthusiastic reception, this is not a flawless masterpiece of old-school thrash metal. It is a very good album. Sometimes an excellent one. There are songs here that, judged individually, easily deserve a 95+ rating. However, a few questionable decisions prevent the whole package from reaching those heights. And before anyone grabs the pitchforks: this is not my desperate attempt to be the guy standing in the corner shouting "actually, it's overrated" while everyone else is celebrating. Every metal scene needs that person, but preferably not me. I have enough enemies already. However, I have three issues which slightly taint my overall listening experience and prevent this album from reaching the levels it occasionally threatens to conquer.

So allow me to get these out of the way before moving on to the much more enjoyable part, which is explaining why this album deserves your attention. "Haneda" comfortably sits in the territory of thrash metal, occasionally crossing the border into speed metal, which are two genres that thrive on immediate impact. Which brings me to my first issue: the intro. It is not offensive. It is not embarrassing. It is simply unnecessary. It serves no real purpose because it doesn't even bother to prepare the listener for what is actually waiting around the corner: speed, memorable riffs, a vocalist perfectly suited to the music, and a solid rhythm foundation.

The second issue appears in the middle of the album with "Crystal Skull", an instrumental track. Now, instrumentals absolutely have their place in thrash metal. There are several ways to make them work. Keep them short and violent (Nuclear Assault's "Live, Suffer, Die" immediately comes to mind). Or make the entire album better by removing the vocalist altogether (and every band fan immediately knows which examples to insert here). Or create a piece that expresses musically what words could never achieve (Living Death's "Wood of Necrophiliac" remains a perfect example). "Crystal Skull" unfortunately falls into neither category. It is not bad, but it interrupts an album that to that point had built up excellent momentum. It feels less like a necessary chapter and more like someone pressed pause during a particularly good bar fight to show you holiday photos.

The final issue is the title track itself. A nine-minute song is always a risky undertaking. Few bands manage to create a lengthy composition that keeps the listener fully engaged throughout its entire runtime. "Haneda" starts promising, but eventually begins to collapse under the weight of its own ambitions. The first half makes you wonder why the band did not simply end the song after five minutes and walk away victorious. There is an excellent chorus, strong ideas, and plenty of atmosphere. Unfortunately, the second half starts wandering. A riff here, a short solo there, another section added for good measure, but the song gradually loses focus. It is not terrible. It is just too long. It begins to feel like a journey where the driver forgot where he was going but refuses to admit it. And sitting right at the end, it leaves an insipid aftertaste the album doesn't deserve.

So how can I still rate the album the way I do? Simple. Because beyond these flaws, "Haneda" is filled to the brim with excellent material. Yes, the album is somewhat frontloaded. But there are songs here that many bands would happily trade an arm and a leg for. Possibly both arms, depending on how desperate they are. "Whips-A-Swinging" follows the intro and immediately demonstrates that Cruel Force made the right decision by leaving behind the subtle black influences of their earlier days. What we get here is pure, uncompromising thrash metal in the ways of old. No unnecessary fretboard gymnastics. No endless build-ups where the actual riff arrives after the listener has aged several years. No overthinking. Just straight-to-the-face metal. I truly enjoy the memorable chorus, the excellent riffs and occasional solo madness which puts a ridiculous grin on my face. The short Far Eastern-sounding section in the middle adds another layer and gives the song that little extra something that separates it from the crowd. "Savage Gods" is even better and easily my personal highlight of the album. The fact that the underlying riff suspiciously resembles Whiplash's "Power Thrashing Death" only reinforces the impression that Cruel Force knows exactly where they come from. This band here is not desperately searching for a new identity. The guys proudly wave the flag of a sound that was forged decades ago. Add to that the fantastic section leading into the chorus, and there should be little debate that this song is an absolute scorcher.

The quality does not drop considerably afterwards. "Warlords" continues the high standard, and cleverly plays with tempo changes while avoiding the trap that catches the title track. The song runs for six-and-a-half-minutes, yet it keeps the listener engaged throughout. Cruel Force never plays thrash in its most chaotic and uncontrolled form. Instead, they understand that aggression needs some structure and direction. The vocals perfectly match the music's intensity and sit comfortably in the mix. They reinforce the impression that this band belongs to a different era, the one before everything received a modern plastic coating and a production budget large enough to finance a small country. All of that is another point in favor of the band which avoids any modern polish and conveys authenticity and their good understanding of the genre's prerequisites excellently and in equal measure. My final highlight is "Titan's Awakening", and the title could hardly be more appropriate. It sounds exactly like what it promises: something enormous getting up, stretching its muscles, and politely informing everyone nearby that they are standing on its property. The musicians' enthusiasm and sheer joy of playing are impossible to miss. The energy is infectious. Yes, the middle section drags slightly, but by that point the titan has already knocked down enough walls to earn some patience.

So yes, I looked the gift horse in the mouth. Not all teeth were in pristine condition, but none was rotten to the core and needed to be removed.

Rating: 8.3 out of 10, because "Haneda" is not the untouchable masterpiece some reviews might suggest. In my humble opinion it is something more interesting. Namely an honest, authentic, passionate, riff-driven thrash metal album created by musicians who clearly understand and love the genre. And we all can agree that sometimes enthusiasm matters more than perfection.

Review by Felix on February 16, 2026.

The Force is back. "Haneda", the fourth album of Cruel Force, is in a difficult situation. Two of its big brothers, namely "Under The Sign Of The Moon" and "Dawn Of The Axe", have set the bar almost too high. And yes, the band has managed to modify its style after the long hiatus without offending the black thrash community. The symbiosis of archaic metal elements, a lot of high velocity sections, flair of the eighties and typical genre lyrics made up for the almost complete absence of black ingredients on "Dawn Of The Axe", but what will be the next step? The promo babbles again about Rainbow and Dio, but with all due respect to Ronnie James (R.I.P.) and Ritchie B., I don't want to listen to this kind of rock or metal when it comes to a Teutonic underground legion. Okay, a cool classic solo like the one in "Titan's Awakening" is welcome, but generally speaking, Ronnie and Ritchie should stay at home. "Vielleicht das nachster Zeit", as Rainbow said in their very own form of the German language.

All-clear: "Haneda" does not deliver an inappropriate approach. Malicious tongues might say the album is nothing else but part two of its predecessor. Indeed, izts general configuration with a mix of high speed rockets and more epic / experimental tracks is more or less the same as before, but as long as they deliver absolutely fascinating material, I have no problem with a continuation of the success formula. Nevertheless, "Haneda" has to struggle to meet "Dawn Of The Axe" on an equal footing. It's about nuances that can make a tiny difference in quality. Already the intro "The Cross" is absolutely okay and opens the curtain gracefully, but the extremely cool western feeling of its personal predecessor remains untouched. No big deal, I know. On the other hand, this time the vinyl's B side is kicked off by a regular track. Despite its playtime, the musically rich, almost prodigal "Warlords" is no slightly progressive number. Regardless of its different facets, it joins the ranks of the pretty straight, very fast and admirably energetic pieces that shape a big part of this sonic refuge. If I would have had the outstanding degree of energy of their songs, I would have been an Olympic athlete 35 years ago. But bad luck, already the permanent sports during my military service were a challenge. Okay, next topic.

"Haneda" holds a lot of vital material, always driven by the uncrowned king of excellent fill-ins. GG Alex at the drums lets his sticks fly over the toms and makes the best use of stereo effects for listeners with only two ears. But all of the guys do a great job. Carnivore's voice is not the most expressive one in the German underground scene, but he finds a direct way to the listener and he avoids all things he probably cannot perform very well. So do not expect theatrical or melodic vocals, but a no frills approach with lyrics about war, legends and Gods which fits the musical content brilliantly. Cruel Force race through their compositions with almost no chance for the listener to take a breath. Yes, the instrumental at the end of side A shows the pretty mild face of the band and honestly speaking, it should shy away from comparisons with the other tracks of the album. But this remains an isolated case. "Sword Of Iron", "Titan's Awakening" or "Whips-A-Swinging", these are the names of the songs that characterize an album which is filled to the brim with compact high-speed neckbreakers. Cruel Force act straightforwardly, they have a clear vision and do not seem to be interested in compromises. Breaks like the one in "Whips-A-Swinging", where an edgy guitar line seems to disturb the overwhelming flow of the song, turn out to be another great feature. Not in terms of style, but with respect to quality, Slaughter's song-writing talent follows the dogma that only the sky is the limit and we profit from his talent a lot. And I haven't yet mentioned the absolute best songs of "Haneda".

So it is time to put the spot light on the title track. Frankly, I expected a more or less epic and majestic finale when I saw its playtime of more than nine minutes. Wrong thought, "Haneda" (the song) stands for stylistic continuity. Fast, straight and lively verses show the band in its best form, and the non-commercial yet catchy chorus is in no way inferior to this. The instrumental part gives Slaughter the option to create some more or less solemn melodies, but everything goes hand in hand and so this song leaves no questions open. It justifies each and every second of its nine minutes. The second track that fulfills the highest expectations is "Savage Gods". It is not just a prototype high speed number, one of those which are typical for Cruel Force since their return. It is also a perfect combination of rapid verses with unexpected, highly effective melodies added and a deadly bridge that results in a merciless chorus. You say you can write a better number in this style? Please record and release it and I promise that I will give a higher rating than it is allowed.

Coming to the end, I may not forget to mention the absolutely flawless production. "Haneda" sounds neither over-produced nor does it lack impact. It holds just exactly the listening experience that one wants to get when it comes to an album of "modern" Cruel Force. So only one question remains: who or what is Haneda? At first I thought they write due to whatever reason about the airport in Tokyo (remember Riot's wonderful classic "Narita" from 1979). But this does not seem to be the topic here. Anyway, Cruel Force have released two totally captivating albums since their comeback without losing any iota of their authenticity. Despite the outstanding song material, maybe this is their greatest achievement. Long live the Force.

Rating: 9.1 out of 10