Metal Storm logo
Exodus - The Atrocity Exhibition: Exhibit A review



Reviewer:
7.8

463 users:
8.1
Band: Exodus
Album: The Atrocity Exhibition: Exhibit A
Release date: October 2007


01. A Call To Arms
02. Riot Act
03. Funeral Hymn
04. Children Of A Worthless God
05. As It Was, As It Soon Shall Be
06. The Atrocity Exhibition
07. Iconoclasm
08. The Garden Of Bleeding
09. Bedlam 123

The mighty thrash juggernaut Exodus is back after two years with the first of the two planned "The Atrocity Exhibition" albums, "Exhibit A" and they are here to take no prisoners and make no friends. Exodus has always been about thrash metal, but since the return of these monsters of the genre in 2004 with "Tempo Of The Damned" they have been going from strength to strength as thrash metal rises in popularity once more.

"Exhibit A" launches properly with "Riot Act" and an astounding, razor sharp guitar riff like you have never heard before slices through your ears in true Exodus style. This is as sharp as guitar playing gets, each riff sounding like a razor blade cutting through steel. Fast paced, pounding drums, thundering bass guitar and the howls of Rob Dukes on vocals. The last three years have not been the easiest for Exodus, band member changes always seem to follow the band, but the thing with Exodus is that they keep going just the same as they always have, seemingly regardless of the members. The title track "The Atrocity Exhibition" possesses an almost haunting riff reminiscent of what people would associate with the "devil's music" this is really unlike any sound Exodus have made before. The three tracks after this demonic statement are also three of the best on this modern thrash opus.

Track lengths have grown and grown with Exodus, on an album with eight songs - five of them weigh in at a hefty eight minutes or longer which of course is a great thing if the tracks stay interesting, always have something going on in them and are sure to keep your attention. Unfortunately this is not exactly the case with this offering. "Riot Act", the title track and tracks after that are great songs - the album has its fair share of numbers that will impress, but also it has its share of songs that will leave the listener wishing the band would just pick up the aggression like we know they can do so well. "Funeral Hymn" and "Children Of A Worthless God" are both long songs and together are a significant chunk of the album, yet neither seem particularly inspired or are as extreme as we know Exodus can be. This is off-putting but if you can stay awake through the calm after the original "Riot Act" storm, the reward, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, certainly come towards the end of the album.

Produced by Andy Sneap we know this album will sound good, but the production and sound of the guitars on this album are seismic, probably the sharpest album I have ever heard. Another thing that never fails to disappoint with an Exodus album is Jack Gibson always finding ways of getting his bass guitar heard among the oratory, guitar and drumming assault. This album could not have been produced better.

"The Atrocity Exhibition... Exhibit A" is a fabulous album of galloping, thundering thrash metal in true Exodus style and a good edition to the Exodus catalogue. It may have its placid moments, but this album also has its moments of sheer thrash attack. Alas you cannot help but wonder how much of a classic album it would have been if they had used the best tracks from "Exhibit A" and "Exhibit B" just for one single album. Still, the Exodus juggernaut continues to roll, crushing everything it its path.





Written on 23.10.2007 by Member of Staff since 2006


Comments page 2 / 2

Comments: 35   Visited by: 183 users
13.04.2010 - 16:37
Rating: 6
Dangerboner
Lactation Cnslt
The songs on this album are just too pointlessly long (kinda like the newest Metallica), and they sound horribly boring live. Maybe if they sped things up and shortened the songs I'd like it more

Tempo is awesome, but the fact that every song is the same pace makes it drag after a while for me

I don't mind Dukes at all, besides him being an annoying douche live
Loading...
13.04.2010 - 17:22
Marcel Hubregtse
Grumpy Old Fuck
Written by Dangerboner on 13.04.2010 at 16:37

I don't mind Dukes at all, besides him being an annoying douche live


I didn't find him a douche live at all. But then again it might have helped that he had to throw up in a waste disposal basket due to the combination of Dutch weed and shoarma with loads of garlic sauce Although he did look pale before and after throwing up he did give it his all at the time. But then again that was their Double Live Dynamo DVD presentation at the Dynamo Club.
But even there they played way too many songs off Exhibit A and Shovel Headed Kill Machine which dragged on for ages. Damn they should had just played really old stuff that gig due to the fact it was the dvd presentation. Ah well they were as tight as a duck's ass and really fired on all cilinders so there wasn't too much too complain.
----
Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal

Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight
Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.)
05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996

Loading...
13.04.2010 - 17:49
Rating: 7
Angelic Storm
Melodious
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 13.04.2010 at 16:26
Yep, that is the problem with current Exodus that Gary tries to be brutal for brutality's sake (which was the biggest problem with SHKM). Exodus was never really about the brutality but always more about the melody. That is why both Tempo Of The Damned and especially Bonded By Blood are my favs, cause of the melodies on those two.. Just listen to live favourite And Then There Were None (especially the chorus), Metal Command, A Lesson In Violence. Many people blame Dukes for the current sound. But that is just pathetic cause Holt is the main cmposer and Dukes actually sounds a lot like a cross between Zetro and Baloff and not at all as the hardcore shouter people make him out to be.


Yep, the 80's Exodus was very thrashy, but also had a lot of melody in it. Because of that, the songs sounded very individual, unlike a lot of Exodus's recent material. Even a lot of their pure thrash songs like ''Parasite'' have great melodies in them. Not to mention the slower songs like ''Til Death Do Us Part". Rick Hunolt also had a lot of melody in his solos. Oh, I know a lot of people blame Rob Dukes for how they sound now, which is very unfair, as it is the music that is the main problem. And only Gary can be blamed for that, as he is the main composer of it. For me, Zetro is Exodus' best vocalist. He just suits the band so well! But Rob does a good job. I thought on SHKM there was obvious hints of Zetro's style in his voice, which was a good move on Rob's part! On "Let There Be Blood", he imitated Paul a lot, which again, was a great thing. I agree with Dangerboner about his stage prescence, he is a bit ''hardcorish'', saying ''motherfucker'' in almost every sentence and seems to keep trying to be in ''tough guy'' mode all the time! But vocally, I think Exodus could have done a lot worse, I like him for sure! xD

@Dangerboner: I dunno why you'd find Tempo hard to listen to cos its all ''one pace''. There's some mid-paced and slower songs on there too! Like ''Blacklist'' and ''Shroud Of Urine''. The latter also has some great melodic parts in it! I really love Tempo, I really dont think they could have made a better or more spectacular comeback. I definitely class it among their best albums!
Loading...
05.01.2012 - 03:16
JohnDoe
Account deleted
Good album, but Tempo... and Shovel... are much better.
Loading...
29.11.2012 - 22:01
John Shock

Really? Nobody talks about Iconoclasm? Fuck...i'm really sad because i have no one to share my feelings about this song! \m/ for me, it's really amazing, and it's my cellphone ringtone it's scares the shit out, on most of the people who's near me and my cellphone starts to ring!
Loading...

Hits total: 12812 | This month: 11