Review by Death8699 on July 20, 2019.

Originally from Germany and founded in 1982 under the name Knight of Demon, the band decided to change their name to Destruction after a few weeks. They've undergone several lineup changes over the years and seem to have found their most solid one that is currently featured on this album. This includes, Marcel "Schmier" Schirmer on bass/vocals, Mike Sifringer on guitars and Marc Reign on drums. They seem to function better as a 3-piece outfit but for this release they did include several guest backup vocalists and lead guitarists. With Mike doing the riff-writing, Schmier taking the responsibility behind the lyrical concepts, and Mark staying up to par on the drum set, this seems to have formed a more solid foundation for the band.

Over 25 years in the musical arena, Destruction has been playing thrash metal that has been musically driven by Mike. These 10 tracks show, without any question, to be another very mature and comprehensive release. Mike's riff-writing concepts exhibit many galloping structures with songs as well as technical bits that accompany Schmier's unique vocals. The songs output is intriguing, catchy and energy stricken. In addition, they are entirely flawless arrangements. They are displaying very uniquely driven original tracks. The beginning of the album features an acoustic guitar riff melody which flows perfectly into a heavily crunch tone guitar assortment throughout the song and, for the most part, the entire album. This paves the way for an allotted and ingenious array of songwriting structures. 

From a musical aspect, the title track seemed to catch me the most out of this entire album. The rest of the songs still show a solid assortment of riffs, which captures Destruction fans as being a sound and uncompromising outfit, which never cashed in on their musical style just to sell records. Besides the title track, the whole album exhibits a heavy tone to it, which remains one of the band's best songwriting releases since The Antichrist back in 2001. "Inventor of Evil" didn't catch me as much as this current one because I found it to be a little staler within the songwriting components. "D.E.V.O.L.U.T.I.O.N." is a monumental concoction that catches the ear with an utmost of well-engineered tracks. This entire release clocks in at around 50 minutes in length.

Mike's rhythm guitar work is much stronger than his leads. This has always been the case which is probably why Destruction chose many guest lead guitarists. In no way do I discount his talent, but his rhythm guitar riff executions are very technical though his solos are not. They seem to be more improvised and lack a fundamentally based assortment of works. He doesn't seem to reflect much clarity in designing solos that contain arpeggios, sweep picking and highly tremolo picked outputs. As a result, Destruction sought out other guest lead guitarists because Mike falls a bit short in this department. Schmier and Marc follow Mike's rhythms with utmost precision. Schmier's vocals sound like no other thrash metal act in existence. He displays a style which is wholly original and highly sophisticated.

In regard to the lyrical writings, Destruction focuses on a plethora of topics here on this release. Schmier writes about his views on religion. If you research his profile on Destruction's official website, he refers to religion as being the biggest lie of mankind. Other topics here include his perception on politics, addictive drug use and heavy metal music itself. These are a broad range of writings that seem to make up the whole of Destruction's past and current lyrical concepts. During the 1980's era, Schmier focuses mostly on Satanism and anti-religion aspects. His writings on this release shy away from those previously stated. Another note to add, the US version of this album does not feature the Tank cover that's on the Japanese release.

Another classic and monumental thrash metal release Destruction belts out once again. "The German Thrash Metal Legend" still remains in effect and without a doubt does not disappoint the listener whatsoever. Originality in the guitar riff writings, the wide plethora of contributors both on leads and backup vocals, puts this release amongst one of the finest in years. It's another definite classic because of the songwriting, the production sound, the unique guitar works and sets Destruction in a thrash metal category of its own. Songs to check out if you're not convinced would be the title track, "Offenders of the Throne" and "Odyssey of Frustration." If you're keen on the genre of thrash metal, don't let this release shy away from your collection.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Review by Felix on December 2, 2020.

Please take pity on me, because I have listened to Demonic, the black sheep of Testament’s discography. Low average on most reviews speaks volumes, doesn’t it? Especially when taking into account that some appreciated review writers have a tendency to an inflationary scoring system, at least from my pessimistic German view. But frankly speaking, Demonic did not really annoy me. It’s different, it does not trigger an overload of emotions and one can start a discussion about the credibility of a band that suddenly discovers its affinity for death metal aesthetics. Moreover, I agree that some songs don’t work, for example the completely useless 'New Eyes of Old'. Nevertheless, my personal nadir of Testament’s catalogue is another album – and Souls of Black has really cemented its position at the end of the ranking.

Of course, the full-length breaks with the more or less traditional, technically oriented approach of the formation and it is easier to like Demonic if one does not belong to the group of people who wants music where the technical skills of the guitarists are oozing out of every riff, line and solo. The stomping quasi title track, simultaneously the opener, tells a totally different tale. It sounds clumsy and one-dimensional – but it also has a resilient bridge and it does not lack coherence. I also understand that some people spit on the vocals of Chuck Billy, because his mostly monotonous growling is an insult to his real potential. On the other hand, it doesn’t bother me and if you want to record an album at the interface of thrash and death metal, this kind of vocals is not inadequate.

The songs themselves come and go without having an enormous impact. Maybe it’s an irony of fate that they are – despite their generally vehement design – pretty harmless and lukewarm instead of “demonic”. However, the opener is okay and the same goes for songs like 'Murky Waters' (great beginning thanks to a cool riff, speedy verses). The mid-paced 'Hatreds Rise' is almost a little jewel with a more or less “normally” singing Chuck and, by the way, this song is not too far away from the typical Testament material. Additionally, the number of flops is not higher than on many other outputs of the legendary yet only rarely outstanding five-piece. So I see no reason to throw the album in the bin – and I rather forgive metal bands a flawed heavy than a flawed shallow or commercial album.

Do I need to say something about the production? Don’t think so, because Testament always had the financial opportunities to forge an appropriate sound and at least in this regard, Demonic marks no exception. In a nutshell, the here reviewed work did not deliver what we expected back in 1997 and its self-chosen simplicity lays itself open for understandable criticism. Anyway, it is no absolute stinker from my perspective.

Rating: 6 out of 10

Review by Felix on December 2, 2020.

Please take pity on me, because I have listened to Demonic, the black sheep of Testament’s discography. Low average on most reviews speaks volumes, doesn’t it? Especially when taking into account that some appreciated review writers have a tendency to an inflationary scoring system, at least from my pessimistic German view. But frankly speaking, Demonic did not really annoy me. It’s different, it does not trigger an overload of emotions and one can start a discussion about the credibility of a band that suddenly discovers its affinity for death metal aesthetics. Moreover, I agree that some songs don’t work, for example the completely useless 'New Eyes of Old'. Nevertheless, my personal nadir of Testament’s catalogue is another album – and Souls of Black has really cemented its position at the end of the ranking.

Of course, the full-length breaks with the more or less traditional, technically oriented approach of the formation and it is easier to like Demonic if one does not belong to the group of people who wants music where the technical skills of the guitarists are oozing out of every riff, line and solo. The stomping quasi title track, simultaneously the opener, tells a totally different tale. It sounds clumsy and one-dimensional – but it also has a resilient bridge and it does not lack coherence. I also understand that some people spit on the vocals of Chuck Billy, because his mostly monotonous growling is an insult to his real potential. On the other hand, it doesn’t bother me and if you want to record an album at the interface of thrash and death metal, this kind of vocals is not inadequate.

The songs themselves come and go without having an enormous impact. Maybe it’s an irony of fate that they are – despite their generally vehement design – pretty harmless and lukewarm instead of “demonic”. However, the opener is okay and the same goes for songs like 'Murky Waters' (great beginning thanks to a cool riff, speedy verses). The mid-paced 'Hatreds Rise' is almost a little jewel with a more or less “normally” singing Chuck and, by the way, this song is not too far away from the typical Testament material. Additionally, the number of flops is not higher than on many other outputs of the legendary yet only rarely outstanding five-piece. So I see no reason to throw the album in the bin – and I rather forgive metal bands a flawed heavy than a flawed shallow or commercial album.

Do I need to say something about the production? Don’t think so, because Testament always had the financial opportunities to forge an appropriate sound and at least in this regard, Demonic marks no exception. In a nutshell, the here reviewed work did not deliver what we expected back in 1997 and its self-chosen simplicity lays itself open for understandable criticism. Anyway, it is no absolute stinker from my perspective.

Rating: 6 out of 10