Coincidentally, just before reviewing Merciless's The Awakening last week, I noticed a band on my town's late-night metal radio show called Dreadful Fate, which is the name of a track on the Merciless album. Truly coincidence? I think not! Dreadful Fate's debut EP comprises an extreme thrash with many of the same Germanic influences, and which includes a cover one of Kreator's earliest songs. There's definitely an energy here that never lets up.

Starting off, we get the title track, a blast of fury with drum fills that are fast enough to be considered single beats of their own at times. These occasionally outshine the guitars in the mix, driving the songs to a headlong pace that is likely to leave listeners' necks sore. A few times, usually in the middle of the track, the thrash speed slows down for a bridge that keeps up a headbangable rhythm but also gives the song some variety.

The final track's a good cover of the original Tormentor, but doesn't really put much of the band's own personality into it. Nonetheless, this is a promising start, especially in a world where many of the really furious blackened thrash bands of the 80s are getting older and slower. I look forward to hearing more out of these guys.