DUST BOLT

Trapped In chaos

nApALM German thrashers start to emerge from their heroes’ shadows Where Dust Bolt previously stumbled was their attempts at trying to cover too many of thrash metal’s bases and writing songs that were too long and uninteresting in the process. On album four, they’ve grown into their melodic Hi-Tops, focusing on tempo, structure and arrangements instead of aping everyone from Razor to Metallica. Their present sound is most comparable to the 80s/90s transition when the most populous denizens of San Francisco’s Mission District were the homeless and coming-ofage thrashers on their second and third albums.

The Fourth Strike starts the album with a sophistication only previously hinted at. That’s embellished by the melodic maturity of Rhythm

To My Madness before a sly nod to Xentrix on Killing

Time. Trapped… isn’t a definitive DB sound, but it’s closer to it than ever before.

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FOR FANS OF: Exodus, Testament, Forbidden

CONNIE GORDON