Whether you're the traditional thrash fan who wears the old-school sleeveless patched denim jackets or you're one of the younger fans who wear the mass produced printed jackets, _Insurrection Rising_ will pull you from whatever jacket you're wearing and administer the thrash assault. The vocal delivery is harsh and powerful, yet maintains a level of clarity that gets the message through. The lyrical topics are easily deducible after paying some attention to the song titles and Dave Silver's singing.

Producer Chris Tsangarides did an exceptional job with the four remaining instruments. The sound quality of this record is exactly the kind of complement its music needs, nay, demands. The riffs are gripping regardless of their speed, like the amazing gallop on the astounding "Enemy Image (Dehumanization)" or the neck-breaking mid-tempo riffing on "Silent Empire".

The album closer "He Who Laughs Last" is a major highlight here. After a brief build-up, it shifts into a riff that I challenge you to stay still while listening to it, then drummer Ernie Nogara plays a marvelous beat segment to usher the rest in.

Melodies are also a big part in this thrashing compendium. "The Nihilist Machine" and "In the Absence of Liberty" come with their memorable melodies, but the latter sonically surpasses the former in terms of vocal performance and listener and/or crowd engagement. This album also has its fair share of impressive guitar solos, like on the mosh-igniter "The Serpent Tongue of Divinity" and the rather vocal-centric "Vigil of the Navigator". The lead guitar work supplements the aural aggression of the thrashy segments with its sensible and fervid touch.

_Insurrection Rising_ will put every retro-thrash album that follows it to a very scrutinizing test, because it is a bloody impressive effort that would get the snobbiest crowd recklessly running around in a circle pit. New thrashers, please consider you bar raised.