Destruction are what I like to call your solid Thrash Metal band. Not for them the wayward path; apart from a period in the nineties when Schmier left that few people like to talk about, they’ve been churning out the riffs since 1982. And guess what? Tenth full-length D.E.V.O.L.U.T.I.O.N is as solid an album as you could wish for a classic German Thrash band in 2008. Which means it’s pretty damn good, from the acoustic notes of the intro to the twisted vocals of the end. The moment that Schmier lets out his trademark scream in the opening title track, you know you’re in for one hell of a ride through Thrash’s post-millenial terrain; big chunky riffs, gang-shouts and fantastic solos all feature here, as well as the most important and most underrated element of Metal – the songwriting.

Throughout the album, Destruction prove that their experience has paid off, as they write catchy yet Thrashing anthems – the ripping Elevator To Hell, the crushing Vicious Circle – The Seven Deadly Sins (complete with monkish chanting) the pulverising Offenders Of The Throne... there’s nothing to complain about at all. Oh, some extreme purists may find a riff or two in Last Desperate Scream a bit too groovy, but when you’ve got as good a solo there, who cares? The playing on D.E.V.O.L.U.T.I.O.N is pretty fantastic, Schmier backed up by the usual crew of guitarist Mike Sifringer (Gary Holt and Jeff Waters providing guest solos on Urge and Vinnie Moor in the title track) and Marc Reign on drums. And above all this is Thrash that entertains in a way that the new wave of Thrash bands springing from everywhere like nightmarish self-cloning mutants will never be able to replicate – it’s plain German Thrash that needs nothing more than a few beers and space to headbang in. No progressive experimentation, no rapping, no female vocals, just pure Thrash madness from the masters, that works so well for what it is alone.

You don’t need to be under the age of eighteen, into beer bongs or skateboarding (never seen the appeal of the last, myself, except for those fun videos of people falling off the stupid things) to enjoy this, and in a Metal world where money is increasingly becoming more important than music, it’s a joy indescribable in mere words to hear Schmier’s butchering of the word ‘odyssey’. If you aren’t throwing the horns, unveiling the flag of hate and grinning like a loon through each syllable (Oh! Dee! See!) then you can damn well leave the hall. Let’s hope the Destruction lads release many more albums as ass-kickingly good as this in years to come.