Send "Destruction " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Popmatters |
 When thrash-metal made its resurgence in the middle of the last decade, a lot of people cast their gazes toward the old-school progenitors who were still kicking around to see if they could keep up with the younger bands—including Municipal Waste, Warbringer, and Merciless Death—who kick-started the grassroots resurgence. In response, some veteran bands pulled through with some great music, such as a reunited Testament and Death Angel, Kreator, Megadeth, and Overkill. But one of the best German thrash bands to come out of the 1980s, Destruction, was lagging behind. Their 2001 comeback album, The Antichrist, was a phenomenal return to form after years of creative dormancy (“Nailed to the Cross” still scorches), but after that, it felt like the trio had complacently put their music in cruise control. Subsequent albums seemed uninspired, especially when stacked against such classic early material as Sentence of Death and Eternal Devastation. Only 2007’s Thrash Anthems, which saw them re-record some of their favorite tracks (one of the only cases where that tired gimmick actually worked) saw the band working some of that old energy.Nearly three years after the very middling D.E.V.O.L.U.T.I.O.N., bassist/vocalist Marcel “Schmier” Schirmer and longtime sidekick Mike Sifringer return with a new record label in the form of European powerhouse Nuclear Blast, a new drummer in Wawrzyniec “Vaaver” Dramowicz, and a new full-length. And it comes as a tremendous relief to those who have listened to this band for all these years that Day of Reckoning is the furious face-melter that everyone knew this talented band was still capable of. Destruction promised a return to that good old traditional thrash, and indeed, the new record wastes absolutely no time in showing everyone the band means business this time around. Opener “The Price” kicks off with a full-on scream from Schmier, crazed shredding by Sifringer, and a tremendous, propulsive double-time beat by Vaaver. When they’re on their game, Destruction can pull off some undeniably ferocious thrash along with some very contagious hooks, and that’s definitely the case here, first with “The Price” and all the way through the other ten tracks. Sifringer’s riffs are inspired on “Hate is My Fuel”, the track bolstered by the kind of gang vocals that ignite a thrash crowd. “Devil’s Advocate” shifts brilliantly from a thunderous gallop to full-on speed, Sifringer’s nimble fretwork, in a sly nod to the classic song “Bestial Invasion”, making the song sound even faster than it is. And despite a title that ranks as one of the more ridiculous thrash song titles in recent memory, “Armageddonizer” is nevertheless irresistible, alternating from a massive stomp to a thrash chorus that swings as well as a Slayer tune....full text |
| Angrymetalguy |
| Some bands age like fine wine, some like sushi. It’s a fact of life and we see it demonstrated time and time again. Today we examine the shelf life of Destruction. These gents have been around forever and started life as one of the big three of the Germanic thrash invasion of the early 80′s along with Sodom and Kreator. Their early releases were classics and seminal reference points within the genre. After being dead for the better part of the 90′s, they reformed in 2000 and started life anew as part of the reawakened thrash scene. Since then, Destruction proved themselves to be firmly on the wine side of the aging formula and the reunion albums ranged from good to great with none better than 2008′s D.E.V.O.L.U.T.I.O.N. Here on Day of Reckoning, their eleventh platter, Destruction once again prove they’re seasoned elder statesmen of thrash with no sushi in sight. This is yet another slab of righteous, riotous thrash with tons of hooks and it demands the horns be raised high in homage. As soon as opener “The Price” starts out, it’s clear Destruction went back to their old school thrash roots and decided to up the aggression a few notches. This is classic, angry, frantic Destruct-thrash like the good old days and it sounds rock solid and mighty pissed off. All the trademark elements of the Destruction sound are here and battle ready. The unique, odd but always uber cool riffing of Mike Sifringer and one of a kind vocals of Schmier sound great and now they’re joined by new drummer Vaarve who acquits himself amazingly well here. From go its furious, thrash-tastic sonic abuse with some excellent song structures and a lot of memorable hooks and interesting musical moments. The first three tracks hit on all cylinders and show Destruction at their rabid best. Later on, “Devil’s Advocate” will draw big smiles from long time fans due to the sudden inclusion of the riff from “Bestial Invasion” (pronounced Bass-tial) off their debut album Infernal Overkill....full text |
| Heavymetal |
| Although Day of Reckoning is probably Destruction’s best full length effort since 2001’s The Antichrist, the questions still beg to be asked: “does this really matter” and “is anybody still listening?” This is because Day of Reckoning sounds like just another Destruction album—a means to tour and yet another link on the career chain—with no deeper meaning or real relevance, other than being another solid thrash record to toss on the pile. Although The Antichrist worked through sheer energetic will and the fact that thrash metal was not yet as in vogue as it is these days, Day of Reckoning seems to exist within a comparative plane of complacency. It's an album which simply rides the favorable wave of new thrash, without really offering anything new or inventive to the established Destruction formula. Sure, one could argue that thrash metal is, by definition, a very unoriginal template with which to work, and Destruction shouldn’t be held to any sort of progressive metal standard. Yet, there should also be a benchmark here—particularly when taking into account the viability and importance of Destruction’s '80s material—again which the band should be held when writing a new record. Day of Reckoning is well produced, fiery and fast enough to please thrash fiends, yet quickly becomes tiresome by the album’s middle road, leaving nothing but steam in its wake. Bassist/vocalist Schmier still possesses one of the most recognizable and screechingly fabulous voices in the business, while Mike’s guitar work is still lovably stuck in that energetic, notey mode we all appreciate....full text |
Destruction lyrics
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