Whorehouse - "Corporation" (Defense Records, 2017)

Band: Whorehouse
Title: Corporation
Genre: Thrash Metal
Year: 10th May 2017
Time: 34 min
Rating: 82/100













8 years. 8 years were enough for Whorehouse to create a follow-up on their first album "Execution of Humanity", that was even the very first production released by the Polish label Defense Records. But the fact is that Whorehouse have never been a prolific band. Born in 1995, they recorded only 3 demos between 1998 and 2003 before the aforementioned "Execution...", an album composed mostly of old songs but released in a perfect period for the old-school thrash metal revival, shooting also a videoclip for "Violent Storm", the opening track of their debut. And this very long wait has been truly useful to Whorehouse in order to crank up their thrash metal overdose with a better album entitled "Corporation".


Well, "Corporation", whose cover artwork (fantastic as for many albums of this genre!) has made by the artist Lukasz Jaszak (that worked also for Azarath, Behemoth or Decapitated), is an album completely devoted to the Bay Area thrash metal à la Exodus, so Whorehouse aren't so different from other bands here reviewed like the Slovenians Panikk. But, during the listening of the album, you discover that Whorehouse have some aces in the hole useful to made the entire album in a more interesting and effective way.

Firstly, there is an incredible and constant interaction between the two guitars with the result that they create often very long and imaginative solos trespassing also in true virtuosic moments, like in "The Same Old War" and "Toxic Dance" (where, at a certain point, you can hear even a double guitar solo!), so the technical skills of these guys are remarkable. Secondly, also if Whorehouse, as an every thrash metal band worthy of this fame, loves so much the speed and aggression that the drummer spew forth some short blast-beat explosions (into the titletrack and in "W.W.W.A.W.W.B."), they give a very good importance to the mid-tempos, so to characterize mainly in this way numbers like "The Same Old War" and "Toxic Dance".

And as third thing, there is need to say that the second part (in my opinion, the better one) of the album is more unpredictable than the first one because it consists of songs a little bit far from the classic thrash metal standards: so, here you are some dissonances of "W.W.W.A.W.W.B", the creeping death metal riffs of "Invaders" or the wild rock'n'roll guitar solos of "The Silent Unseen", that is strong also of very intense line vocals. Just in this kind of tracks, the singer/guitarist Seba, always on fire with his raucous vocals, is able to experiment a bit with his voice, especially in "Invaders", which is my favorite song of the entire album. But then, it ends with "Anguis in Herba", an instrumental song (apart from a short spoken part in the mid section) totally sui generis because it is dark, doomish and atmospheric also thanks to suggestive arpeggios.

Ergo, these 4 angry Polish guys don't create nothing new but they plays an intense Bay Area thrash metal with personality and ideas thanks mainly to a creative guitarwork. And, after listening for another time the entire "Corporation", I think seriously that 8 years have been totally fundamental to create, without pressures of any kind, a very solid fuckin' album.

Thanks to Marcin of Mythrone Promotion to sending me this album!

Now, if you want, make a donation to Timpani allo Spiedo 'zine through the PayPal button at your right, above the cover artwork of my upcoming book about the proto-black metal. Thank you very much!

Tracklist:

1 - Corporation
2 - The Same Old War
3 - Toxic Dance
4 - Payback
5 - W.W.W.A.W.W.B.
6 - Invaders
7 - The Silent Unseen
8 - Anguis in Herba

Line-up:

Seba - vocals/guitars
Cysiu - guitars
Diabeł - bass
Shambo - drums

FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Whorehouse/151648391542111
Defense Records: http://www.defensemerch.com/