The Noob Exchange: No Mercy- Epic (2010)

In this day and age of thrash its difficult to not only stand out but to be even good at it. You
would think it would be easy to play this style of metal but truth be told there so very few bands who can pull it off and pull it off well. Sure, there are a few exceptions like Warbringer, Legion of the Damned, and Evile. And even new bloods like Vektor and Havok show a lot of promise for carrying the thrash mantle. But overall the legacy of thrash has been watered down with a lot of not so good bands.

Not the case with No Mercy however. Consisting of a trio from Sanford, North Carolina is Stephen Brewer on guitar and vocals, bassist Josh Oldham, and drummer Kevin Griffin. While ive read that Brewer himself is influenced by Metallica and Alice in Chains i find that their sound with the riffs and arrangements are more in tune with old school thrash like D.R.I. (thrash/crossover), Forced Entry, and even a bit of M.O.D which is not a bad thing at all. However, they are able to mix in their own modern vibe to give it their own signature as well. Unknown to me before writing this but having done some research the band had already released a full length album in 08' called "Spark of Creation" (which i need to hear) as well as a live album, demo, and another self titled EP.

But for this review we will be touching on the latest 5 song EP entitled "Epic". While i can say that the band is a bit rough around the edges there is no question they are very talented and hold a lot of promise. And for me currently the two tracks that stand out the most is "Fall into the Sky" and "Eye of the Storm". Both are fast pace and adrenaline building songs with some truly exceptional guitar playing by Brewer. Obviously both Oldham and Griffin complement Brewer very well with some great playing on their own but the guitar is the forefront and sets the tone of the band. But the greatest thing about No Mercy is that you can hear and feel the confidence oozing out of the music as they play unrelentlessly from the heart.

With songs like "Cold Shoulder" you can see the diversity of the band as they are able to slow down the tempo a bit and listening to the lyrics of the songs you can tell that there is a lot of emotion put into them. The fact that No Mercy can keep with the tradition of thrash metal by combining melodies with earth crunching riffs gives them an edge that so many other bands seem to overlook or miss out on. I cannot wait for the next full length from this band as i expect them to grow and hone their skills even further. Currently the band is part of www.itsallaboutmusic.net as one of the member bands. You can talk with the band in their band thread and even hear them on IAAM and also on my own station Radio Anubis featuring the metal show Hordes of Chaos. If you like your thrash metal straight forward and done right than get out and check out "Epic" now. You will not regret it.