Review ATROPHY ‘Asylum’

More than just a few veteran thrash metal bands returned during the last years and here is another one. Atrophy have with ‘Asylum’ a new longplayer in the starting blocks and what will reach us from Tuscon, Arizona is a thundering thrash metal release.

Atrophy belong to the fwave of thrash metal bands with roots in the 80s. The band released a furious debut album called ‘Sozialized Hate’ back in 1988 and the following ‘Violent By Nature’ underlined the talent of this band. Unfortunately, things came to an end in 1993.

It was in 2021 when some serious signs if life were sent by the band. With Brian Zimmermann being the only remaining member of the original line-up, Atrophy restarted the engine and not only played a few shows but also started to work on new material. The result of this effort will hit the shelves mid-March and what blasts out of the speakers is raging thrash metal with a Bay Area heaviness.

The first things metalheads recognize is the visual link back to the 80s as the clown is back on the artwork. But it is more than solely a visual connection that reminds of the heydays. The new Atrophy album features nine songs that are all founded in thrash metal of the time and listening to songs like ‘American Dream’ is a neck breaking experience.

I was reminded more than once of Testament while listening to ‘Asylum’ which also has to do with the strong groove that acts as a common thread throughout the album. At the same time Atrophy manage to create a modern sounding album and hereby bridges past and present.

It not an easy thing to highlight a few songs since ‘Asylum’ doesn’t contain a single filler. Each of these nine songs are reflecting the immense power of thrash metal that is captivating. The massive opener ‘Punishment’ with its ultra-heavy sound is the starting point of the thrash metal journey that ends with ‘Five Minutes til Suicide’. The latter starts calm and half-acoustic which creates a special atmosphere before the full riff power kicks in and guides this song to blistering closing chapter of an album that I haven’t expected to be so strong.

‘Asylum’ is the glorious return of another thrash metal band. Atrophy back in the 80s belonged more to the second wave of thrash metal bands but what the guys deliver with their third album underlines the potential of this metallic powerhouse. I would say that Atrophy in 2024 is even stronger than back in their first era.