Solstice (USA) - Solstice (1992)^{Release ID: 12885}

My initial exposure to Miami-based death/thrash outfit Solstice came through the tape trading scene of the early-to-mid 1990’s when I picked up a copy of their 1992 self-titled debut album from one of my trade contacts. From what I was hearing from the metal grapevine Solstice sounded like they’d be right up my alley & that certainly proved to be the case with the album becoming a mainstay on my Walkman over the next year or so. In fact, I’ve found myself returning to “Solstice” several times over the many years since as it’s become a proven performer when I feel like expending large amounts of energy in a short time period by thrashing my body around my loungeroom or car. For that reason, I’ve been very much looking forward to finally taking a detailed look at the album with the intent of awarding it a well-informed Metal Academy rating & review.

There’s no doubt at all that “Solstice” is the type of metal record that takes no prisoners & has no fucks whatsoever to give about it either. It’s full of energy & is violently aggressive in the way it approaches its task. The production job feels a little closer to a death metal one than your average thrash record while the use of blast-beats from drummer Alex Marquez (Brutality/Cephalic Carnage/Demolition Hammer/Hellwitch/Malevolent Creation/Resurrection) also draw the record towards that space along with the vicious vocals of guitarist Rob Barrett (Cannibal Corpse/Hateplow/Malevolent Creation) which sit somewhere between Death’s Chuck Schuldiner & Pantera’s Phil Anselmo. Despite the clear hints at death metal though, the majority of the instrumentation simply feels more closely aligned with thrash to me so I tend so think of “Solstice” as more of a brutal thrash record than I do a death/thrash one, particularly given that Barrett’s vocals possess a bit of an angry hardcore edge to them that does tend to lack a little in the sophistication department at times.

The tracklisting is very solid with only the silly decision to include a novelty crossover thrash track (i.e. “S.M.D.” aka “Suck My Dick”) tainting an otherwise extremely consistent record. With that said though, I can’t say that there are any genuine classics on offer with Solstice earning their stripes through their overall sound at the expense of any particularly memorable song-writing. They opt to give the listener a royal battering but you’ll rarely find yourself humming along to their riffs afterwards which is the difference between a record like “Solstice” & the heavy-weights of the brutal thrash game like “Epidemic of Violence” or “Idolatry”. Still… there’s something to be said for a bit of “good, friendly violent fun” & Solstice certainly deliver that in spades. It’s hard to deny the pedigree of a band like this one too with guitarist Dennis Munoz (Demolition Hammer) & bassist Mark van Erp (Monstrosity/Cynic/Malevolent Creation) having already spent some time with some household names of the extreme metal scene. Hell, we even get to enjoy the legendary James Murphy contributing guest guitar solos on a few of the tracks which brings some much needed additional melody to the table.

If brutal thrash is your bag then I’ll be surprised if you’re not already acquainted with this record but, if not, then try to picture a combination of the relentless thrash metal assault of Demolition Hammer & Exhorder & the thrashy death metal of early Malevolent Creation. Perhaps, “Solstice” won’t go on to become the classic release it had the potential to on paper but it’s a damn fine record nonetheless.