Metal Underground.com

If I didn't know better, when I first put in Hemoptysis's debut album "Misanthropic Slaughter," I would have thought I was listening to an old Kreator album I'd overlooked. That is how intriguingly similar this Arizona band sounds to them and other classic thrash bands. Aided by renowned producer Ryan Greene (Megadeth), Hemoptysis's sound comes through loud and clear, making this a pretty good debut album that easily supercedes the quality of the band's first EP.

"Misanthropic Slaughter" is a non-stop venture in old-school thrash, proving there is still plenty to contribute in a genre many think is dead. The album teems with energy from start to finish and shows that the four members of this band work in good unison. Vocalist Masaki Murashita has a viciously engaging voice that keeps time with the hardcore thrashing of the title track and other arrangements on the record. He is fairly well suited to the more melodic chuggers such as "MOD," where he navigates around the onslaught of leads and the more slamming riffs.

The majority of the songs are fast-paced thrashers like "The Cycle." This is where Hemoptysis shines the most, as the vocals and rhythm undeniably feel like they have the most zeal when they are pelting it out. The fretwork and drums trade speed and give way nicely to each other, better than when they jump around a lot without forethought or flow in "And the World Dies." That song proves to be a bit too fragmented and that lack of flow leads to tedium. Other songs take the slower, more controlled route like "Hopeless," which is fueled by an array of good leads that enhance the song's basic structure. That unison the bassist and drummer have also charges the track "Impending Doom," which capitalizes on minimalist leads to be effective and make its point.

Although the songs are basically bursts of energy that weigh in at the four minute mark, Hemoptysis does try its hand at the longer, more epic song for variety. "End of Sorrow" is the longer lead-off track from "Misanthropic Slaughter," whose acoustic beginning foments into a good series of movements that build and dissolve nicely. This track is easy on the ears since it plays fluidly, showing good songwriting.

Effective time changes are key to any tune, but sometimes I feel like the band navigates back and forth from perfunctory changes that weren't given a lot of thought. Songs like "Hadephobia" and "Shadow of Death" lack this inspiration and get a bit formulaic in that you can predict exactly what the song will do at any given time. From song to song, you get this deja vu of when the leads will give way to the rhythm and back. When they vary the tone of it a bit, like they do in "Bloodstorm," the elements are distinctive enough to make the song different.

"Misanthropic Slaughter" is a pretty capable, well-produced album from Hemoptysis. These four guys have the chops to pull off a decent album and represent that older thrash sound. They are commanding when they take charge of the faster and more melodic sounds - it's just an issue with tying it all together. If their killer sound was infused with a bit more abstract songwriting that had more variety both within itself and in respect to the other songs, this release would have truly been memorable.