A revival of metal bands with sporadic albums from their heyday, making a return to the scene in the 90’s, and again after decades deserves a genre of its own. Agent Steel have gracefully added their names to that growing list as other bands find post midlife crisis inspiration to get back in the studio and see if they still got it.
For this band, the reaction may be mixed as the combination between modern production and the John Cyriis vocal style may sound out of step with the 21st century audience. However, this is a formula welcomed openly by Virgin Steele‘s David DeFeis and his latter day output.
It’s a tough line to balance and it’s definitely worth doing some test runs in the studio before making the music video for mass consumption. It can be hit or miss, yet No Other Godz Before Me has a lot of the charm found on the second album Unstoppable Force. Despite the high praise of Skeptics Apocalypse, it wasn’t until their follow up when they stepped outside their esoteric thrash metal roots.
Agent Steel returns with a theme similar to the obscure Crimson Glory album Astronomica and draws many parallels overall. The vocals are different tonally, but far from being embarrassing. The riffs and solos are as epic as ever. The theme of the solar system is expected as they persisted throughout the 2000s going down internet rabbit holes with the most bizarre conspiracy theories front and center. The loyal fans will remember the lyrical symphony of content ranging from alien invasions to interdimensional space travel. Needless to say, this band has been busy gathering more resources than necessary for concept albums and the trend hasn’t stopped since 1999’s Omega Conspiracy.
Surprisingly, the new album covers both eras of thrash. Their early work is represented with speed metal powerhouses like Outer Space Connection. Meanwhile, Trespassers could be from any of their post-90’s albums with a more familiar sound. The Incident takes a page from Blood In, Blood Out with its simplistic yet satisfying modern thrash sentiment.
From Voivod to Vektor, science fiction has been an effective vehicle for metal albums and No Other Godz Before Me is no exception. If you want to hear harmonizing guitars and post-Sanctuary Warrel Dane vocals, Agent Steel has you covered. If you want to decode the matrix and wake up from the so-called simulation, No Other Godz Before Me is probably worth checking out.
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