Glory of Chaos is chock full of old-school Thrash Metal with a modern production, as befits a band like Helstar, that has been around since the early 80s. Power, speed and aggression, that's what it's all about. Glory of Chaos will make you wish it was 1986 again, if you don't already.
Singer James Rivera is in fine form, especially amazing considering how long he's been at it. He conveys tons of raw anger in songs like "Pandemonium," "Bone Crusher" and the aptly named "Anger." He sticks with gritty, mid-range vocals throughout much of the album, but winds it up to a high pitch scream worthy of Rob Halford circa "All Guns Blazing." The guitars have that awesome 80s fuzzy tone and the bass and drums round out the sound nicely. The songs are generally mid-paced to fast, with occasional slower parts.
Rivera does start screaming more and more towards the end of the album (see "Alma Negra") and I prefer his mid-range with the occasional scream. There is also not a lot of variation to the songs and while this makes for a consistent listen, it also tends to get a little repetitious. Minor points, to be sure, and some are likely to find them positives.
Overall, solid to excellent Thrash Metal can be found on Glory of Chaos. Great to see an old-school "Speed" Metal band like Helstar show the next generation how it's done.
