Album Review: Warfield - With The Old Breed
Reviewed by Sam Jones
Metal is vast. It’s so vast bands can be active for a decade or more and only when they put out a new album does the scale of their longevity at last reveal itself. That very band, in this case, is Warfield. Formed in 2012 out of Kindsbach, Germany, the band pride themselves upon their thrash attack as well as their devotion all things carnal and pounding. Releasing their first EP, Call To War, in 2014, it would be another four years before the band finally released their first studio album. Wrecking Command saw the light of day alongside Metal On Metal Records however, almost seven years later to the day, Warfield return with their second full length album, this time with Napalm Records backing them. With The Old Breed is the band’s return to activity no doubt to the galore of many a longtime fan, however this is equally Warfield’s prime chance to entice legions of fresh fans over to their corner. As one such candidate to their ranks, I was very excited to delve right into this record, especially when we don’t see many three-piece thrash acts either. It’s time to ready ourselves and mosh With The Old Breed, due out April 4th.
I instantly took a liking to Warfield’s style of thrash, not merely because its bristling with old school sensibilities but because their approach to writing riffs feels much more methodical and intricate than their contemporaries may throw out. As the band play, it benefits to listen closely: you’ll be surprised as to how quickly the riffs will evolve and change as the songwriting progresses. Though the band may be giving you the primary riff of a song their guitarist’s hands are barely slowing for a moment not simply due to speed but owing to how many chords a single track is willing to throw at us. One may imagine the fretboards being swept along with ease and rapidity given Warfield’s especially technical form of songwriting. There are verses sporadically spread throughout the record where the guitar attack delves into even further technicality, where chords bridging various parts of a track become a spree of individual notes but even then, the band maintain aggressive organisation over their more complex sequences. Thrash like this isn’t written in an afternoon but is trialled again and again through copious effort, discerning whether it feels right.
I think this bleeds into Warfield’s nationality too; they’re German, and With The Old Breed feels like a record that only German thrash could have crafted. Their sound screams Sodom and Destruction influence for not only do the riffs possess an icy, stabbing impact but the vocals too harness that continental English accent whereby language itself has been weaponised to give their performance a hidden edge. As a result, one could designate Warfield as a candidate in prospective blackened thrash tours given the aesthetic their performance oozes with. We can recognise the classic thrash attack Warfield come at us with but there is a clearly macabre angle which they utilise that sets them a little apart from the crowd.
Speaking of which, the vocals are an excellently unique touch. They’re far from the typical gruff and bellowing timbre expected, tapping into more visceral territory that thrash today doesn’t see much of, at least in the way of younger talent. But, on the other hand, the vocals aren’t so blackened that they move the songwriting away from its classic thrash roots, thus morphing into that subgenre. Vocally the band have struck a pleasant middle ground that will surely attract fans from either side of the spectrum, and its great to acknowledge how they aren’t grating nor some additional challenge to appreciate them. Though we can feel the scraping, carving feel of Johannes Clemens’ delivery, that malicious fervour, they fit perfectly into the band’s assault and likely due to the instrumentation embodying a thinner and more piercing style of guitar attack. Warfield have strength abounding here but its not the kind that will cave your skull in, it isn’t a caveman attack; in this instance is much more akin to medieval torture procedures: pulled apart on the rack, drawn and quartered. Warfield’s overall presence is one where the threat is ever real but the ferocity is channelled through more unforgiving, apathetic means. You’re still targeted but the band are taking particular glee in dismembering your body.
Warfield, astonishingly, are a three-piece band but still put out thrash that other acts with additional members would struggle to replicate. Its also fast which is a natural anticipation with thrash metal, this aided by the band choosing not to write more developed songs preferring instead for music that hits you in the jaw repeatedly until the record is done. I’ve heard thrash bands play faster than Warfield do here but given the danger inherent in With The Old Breed it lends a morbid momentum to their performance. One aspect as to why this is boils down to how no part of the band stalls for anything, particularly the drums. As with the band on the whole, the drums aren’t content to play rudimentary patterns you’ve heard who knows how many times over but opt to bring the full kit into operation. There are few occasions where the double bass drums are rolled out, evidently citing how Warfield didn’t want any specific elements to be leaned on, but when they’re used it elevates the band’s firepower tenfold. What the drums do however is bring an extraordinary variety to thrash where often the drumming only delivers on what’s expected as a bare minimum. The drums do their part to keep Warfield’s performance continuously engaging and far from the norm, even as the record enters its latter stage, and if the drumming keeps you invested then the band truly have free reign to display their prowess.
In conclusion, Warfield are a band thoroughly at home with thrash of the old guard. Though their influences are evident, they’re far from resting on them alone. With The Old Breed is a Warfield record thorough and through and exceedingly well written at that too. Even when they delve into their one longer piece towards the record’s conclusion the band persistently write metal that’s interesting and doesn’t feel like its boxed in to any degree. While on surface appearances Warfield may appear to be another thrash act inspired by classic acts of the age, these guys are far from typical and certainly deserve the limelight. The title track features a nice callback to Kreator’s own “Pleasure To Kill” but then the band crack on with their own style; its precisely that, small nods here and there to classic German thrash but Warfield’s near-blackened form of thrash will have its hooks in you easily, and soon you’ll find your flesh pulled in its direction. If there was a modern thrash band that deserved greater acclaim my pick would be Warfield for whilst they tick the boxes on what you expect to receive, the band do a sublime job in providing material you simply will not be anticipating which only blows the doors wide open for anything the band have lined up for you. The band demonstrate that thrash need not be this caged, rigid beast its generally depicted as, it can be ever more fearsome. That signing with Napalm Records is absolutely deserved.
