Spirit Animal is a five piece crossover thrash band from Richmond, Virginia. They released a 4-track demo called 'Real' on December 26, 2012. The EP contains guest vocals by Justice Tripp (of Trapped Under Ice) and Ace Stallings (of Break Away). About two years ago, thrash metal made a huge comeback in the metal scene... Many people have never let go of thrash, but there were many detractors as well, stating that so called "re-thrash" was just a trend, and brought nothing new to the table. While this has somewhat lost its steam in metal, a similar resurgence sprung up in hardcore as well. With bands like Rotting Out, Power Trip, War Hungry, and Twitching Tongues becoming immensely popular, this is the same sort of retro worship in the name of bands like Suicidal Tendencies, Cryptic Slaughter, Wolf Pack, and Nuclear Assault.
Spirit Animal is definitely in the same vein as these new crossover thrash type of hardcore bands. There are some very satisfying, straight up Bay-area thrash riffs going on here. The production is crisp and appropriate, and the musicianship required to play this style is there. Most importantly, the vocals have the right level of snarl, and do not stray into the realm of cheesiness. While the band's sound is not terribly original, it's also far from boring. There are some nice short solos and breakdowns here as well. The lyrical message often seems to touch onto light anti-Christian themes. Your level of enjoyment of this EP hinges on whether or not you are accepting of retro thrash or crossover. Personally, just like HC punk, I will never grow tired of thrash!
Review Score: 4.0/5
Get the EP on their BandCamp for 'name your price.'
Check out a video of the band performing live:
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