Rabid Assassin: Eliminate The System review

When Ghost of War frontman Thane Farace found himself in a situation where he was writing material that the rest of the band didn’t want to do, because they felt the songs didn’t fit their sound, he started a side project so he could realize the vision of this new music and Rabid Assassin was born. Thane had no idea that this new outlet would soon consume him and that the growing momentum behind Rabid Assassin would become his main focus in such a short period of time. Armed with an extremely strong batch of songs and a new band consisting of guitarist Chad Bedsaul, bassist Dan Delaney and drummer Corey Brooks, they set about recording their debut album Eliminate The System via High Volume Music. Almost immediately a massive buzz started around the video for “I Hate,” which has landed them on Kerrang magazine’s Top 10 Most Offensive Videos of All Time list. That distinction has also earned them a distribution deal with Sony Music and an opening slot for Like A Storm. The album opens with a one minute diatribe, set over pre-recorded audio snippets of Barack Obama’s “Presidential Lies,” punctuated by the phrase “I Hate” and title track “Eliminate the System” is an attack on the US government’s failed policies and rampant corruption that has a Five Finger Death Punch vibe to it, especially the lyric “Burn the mother fucker down.” Elsewhere, the air raid sirens and explosions at the beginning of “War Machine” sets the tone for a brutal old school 80’s metal throwback, dedicated to the United States Marine Corps, while “Taker” mixes the swagger of vintage Black Sabbath with modern elements of Down & Sheavy. The aforementioned “I Hate” finds guitarist’s Thane Farace & Chad Bedsaul clicking like a precision timepiece, while the pummeling rhythm section of Dan Delaney & Corey Brooks is second to none and should thrill fans of Countdown to Extinction era Megadeth. Meanwhile, “The Deal” showcases a riff so infectious it should come with a hazmat suit alongside a bass line that rumbles like a 10.0 earthquake and good luck trying to get the chorus of “Protect and to serve, In for the kill” from “In For the Kill” out of your head anytime soon. Although it goes against the grain, the band’s party anthem “Ass Gas or Grass” is one of the albums true highlights that get’s a massive crowd response live, but just in case the band missed expressing their hatred towards humanity in general, closer “Everybody” literally attacks everyone else. Here’s the bottom line- Rabid Assassin is as good- if not better than any of the musical peers they emulate and have world domination firmly in their crosshairs. Rating: 9 out of 10 -Eric Hunker