Poltergeist – Back To Haunt CD Review
31st October 2016Next up is Poltergeist…no not the (supposedly) horror film from the 80s, which a lot of people don’t know is directed by Tobe Hooper,the director of (in my opinion, overrated horror film) the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre! This is the Swiss thrash band from the 80s who disbanded in 1993 and then reformed in 2013 (didn’t want to miss out, what with all these old thrash bands making a comeback due to the resurgence in thrash). Poltergeist really became known in the early 90s when vocalist André Grieder provided the vocals on Destruction’s fourth album, Cracked Brain. So what do Poltergeist bring to the table with their comeback album Back to Haunt? Well, it’s a thrash album that covers all bases of thrash!
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/281617933″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]The album Back to Haunt is a solid album, however, Poltergeist don’t seem to have an identity? Maybe it’s the 13 years absence? They have the basis and blueprint that thrash legends Exodus and Destruction have followed in their comebacks, sounds promising I know! However, on the tracks they sound like an imitation of thrash legends and go from band to band…Overkill, Anthrax, Metallica, Exodus, Metallica and numerous others get the treatment and they don’t seem to settle on one! Supposedly the reason the band broke up originally was because their albums were viewed as “good, but not good enough to set them apart.” Which can be said about Back to Haunt, but I think they can change this around in future releases.
If you love thrash, then this is a solid album and fans of their previous albums will lap this release up. Some thrash fans will say if “I want to listen to (insert thrash band) then I’ll put one of their albums on.” I suppose this is a fair point. However, every song has something to give and there really aren’t any fillers. Maybe some songs could be slightly shorter so they pack a heavier punch. That’s just a small criticism, though. However, I just hope they find their own identity for the next release!
But for now dust off your white high top trainers, pale blue jeans and 80s thrash band t-shirt and bang your head! It might be a little thrash by numbers but it’s enjoyable and if you are new to thrash you could do worse than pick this album up!
Score: 7 out of 10
Back To Haunt Information
Track List:
1. Back To Haunt
2. Gone and Forgotten
3. Patterns In The Sky
4. And So It Has Begun
5. When The Ships Arrive
6. The Pillars of Creation
7. Faith Is Gone
8. Flee From Today
9. Shell Beach
10. Beyond The Realms of Time
11. A Distant Knowledge
Record Label:
Pure Steel Records
Release Date:
21st of October, 2016
For fans off…
Destruction, Coroner, Death Angel
Order your copy of Back To Haunt here!
