There are times when one has to give it up for an album that isn't the least bit groundbreaking and isn't very original but is still solid and well executed;
Serpent Smiles and Killer Eyes is such an album. This is a 2007 release that, stylistically, is firmly planted in the '80s. But there is no question that
Hatesphere is enjoyably good at what they do, and on
Serpent Smiles and Killer Eyes, their forte remains '80s-style thrash metal with hardcore elements -- not hardcore as in '90s/2000s metalcore or screamo, but old-school, pre-'90s hardcore as in
Sick of It All,
Agnostic Front,
D.R.I., and
the Cro-Mags. Lead singer Jacob Bredahl barks in an angry fashion that -- although not full-fledged metalcore screaming -- certainly recalls '80s hardcore. Thrash metal, however, is this album's main ingredient, and scorching tracks like "Forever War" and "Damned Below Judas" recall the days in which '80s thrashers like
Slayer,
Metallica,
Exodus,
Testament,
Dark Angel,
Anthrax, and
Megadeth were all doing their part to push metal in a more punk-friendly direction. Occasionally, Bredahl detours into a death metal-ish "cookie monster" growl, but
Serpent Smiles and Killer Eyes never really becomes an all-out death metal album; again, the most accurate way to describe this disc is "'80s-style thrash metal with elements of '80s hardcore and occasional death metal references."
Serpent Smiles and Killer Eyes never pretends to reinvent the metal wheel, but it's an inspired, if derivative, outing from these Danish thrashers. ~ Alex Henderson