Michigan’s Satyrasis have something sorely lacking in today’s thrash landscape–their sound doesn’t fit into a discrete category ready-made for marketing to consumers of the thrash revival. They don’t fit cleanly within the surging Bay Area or crossover crowds, nor are they disciples of the German or South American movements. Instead, Satyrasis have a personality of their own, and it’s well-expressed on Creation of Failure, a solid offering of thrash flavored with death and fleeting tastes of speed and hardcore. The band themselves claim their influences and goal to be the combination of the aggression of Carnivore, Metallica’s infrastructure, and Death’s technicality. Lofty goals indeed, but it does seem to capture what they’re gunning for.

The boys make a good impression out of the gate with beastly, death metal inspired drum abuse before the band settles into the fiery thrash gallop that kicks off “Lockjaw.” The vocals, often an X-factor in thrash, more often than not fare reasonably well and atypically here, with Dave Peterman coming off something like a cross between Bruce Corbitt (the excellent Rigor Mortis) and Rob Flynn. Partly for that reason, Satyrasis sound a little bit like what Machine Head might if they were heavier and more thrash focused. The band has a nice handle on balancing passages of more melodic riffing without watering down the ferocity of their attack. This is aided by the production, which is muddy for sure, but stout and organic, which allows them to exploit melody without coming across as spit-shined and polished. Similarly, they have a good mix of primal, neck snapping thrash aggression and technical flare, and the songs on Creation of Failure also boast more complex arrangements than the vast majority of their new-thrash peers.

Stand out tracks include opener “Lockjaw” and the high velocity, pit-ready battery of “Sheep in Wolves Clothing.” Creation of Failure closes with the nearly eight-minute instrumental “Cyclopean Shores,” which confidently spans sleepy acoustics, hammer-down thrash aggression, and midtempo melodic intensity. I definitely like what these guys are up to–their style, presentation and musicianship are all impressive and make me want to root for the band, despite the occasional rough patches in their songwriting. Satyrasis is still a pretty young project, so I wouldn’t be surprised if next time out they eclipse this impressive debut.