IN REVIEW: Iron Reagan - "Crossover Ministry!"

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Upholding the hallowed tradition of old-school thrash and hardcore masters like Slayer, Anthrax and Suicidal Tendencies (and featuring members of several revered underground metal acts), Iron Reagan's third album feels like the record the world needs right now. The rule book isn't being rewritten here, but the no-muss no-fuss thrash attack heard on Crossover Ministry! offers a welcome release, an opportunity to blow off steam for a half hour and get lost in the racket.

Over the course of its eighteen tracks, Crossover Ministry! deals in the topical and the humourous (Fuck the Neighbors, in particular, is riotous fun), while never relenting for longer than a fleeting moment or two. With its crushing riffs and fleet beats, this is an album that pays homage to the thrash titans without coming off as a mere carbon copy, adapting the pillars of the genre to our modern times; if nothing else, it's a hell of a good time for thrash fans.

February 3, 2017 • Relapse
Highlights A Dying World • Dead With My Friends • Bleed the Fifth

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