But inebriated or not, Necromessiah can't be excused of letting the carelessness get to their music, as _Antiklerical Terroristik Death Squad_ is a tight and compact black/thrash headbanger with a good, thick sound and relentless energy. Taking cues from the likes of Destroyer 666, Impiety and the thrash giants of the 1980s, the Italian trio unleashes 28 minutes of pure gas mask-wearing, grenade chucking war and violence.

However, true to their thrash roots, they avoid saturating the assault in blast beats -- indeed, riffs are very much to the fore, with a prominent bass line and a helluva lot of groove. In this respect the CD surprised me, as the band and album titles led me to expect a neverending, monotonous blaze of machine gun drumming. Although the intensity level remains consistently high, Necromessiah have the class to let their music breathe, unlike many of their peers who believe that violent black metal must be played as fast and as loud as possible at all times.

Despite its clichéd façade, _Antiklerical Terroristik Death Squad_ remains engaging and enjoyable from start to finish, setting Necromessiah head and shoulders above the one-trick ponies that make up the majority of the scene.