Rumpelstiltskin Grinder - Living For Death, Destroying The Rest

Rumpelstiltskin Grinder is one of those bands that hark back to the halcyon days of Thrash-Metal, when Scott Ian had more hair than beard and Dave Mustaine was walking adrift still trying to find the guidance of God Almighty.
Indeed, “Living For Death, Destroying The Rest” remains true to Thrash-Metal traditions in terms of speed and intensity, though it also manages to slightly meander through other genres like Punk, Crossover and Death-Metal as well. See, guitarists Matt Moore and Ryan Moll constantly churn out catchy, teeth-crushing riffs and razor-sharp leads that for the most part of the album are grounded in good old Thrash in line of Exodus and Testament, yet in some tracks they also merge it with other influences balanced between a melodic Heavy-Metal approach and a Hardcore-Punk conviction. A song like “Friends in the Mountain, Ghouls in the Valley” perfectly sums up that eclectic attitude of Rumpelstiltskin Grinder and is definitely one of the most enjoyable tunes of the whole record. “Brainwasher C. 1655″ is another interesting, diverse and well-done song, in which the quartet plays highly infectious riffs at a very speed-metal pace.
Elsewhere, while “Living For Death, Destroying The Rest” is filled with easily-digestible and entertaining Thrash-Metal tunes, I’m afraid it doesn’t stand out all that much and as a whole it will likely be overlooked for just another retro Thrash-Metal workout. Nevertheless, it’s still fun to crank it up in the company of friends once in a while. (6.5/10)

Band info: www.rumpelstiltskingrinder.com
Label info: www.relapse.com
Distributed in Portugal by www.majorlabelindustries.com