Kreator ENEMY OF GOD (SPV)

War, poverty, a world divided, and a rich moron with a God complex in the White House — could there be a better time for a thrash-metal revival? German legends Kreator take full advantage. Enemy of God delivers 12 blistering tracks of old-school thrash that feel neither dated nor silly. The album bristles with solid riffs, powerhouse drumming, and some terrific songwriting. "Impossible Brutality" showcases Mille Petrozza’s command of a voice that combines the deep growl of death metal with the high-pitched scream of black metal. Petrozza lets it all hang out as he intones, "All I see is terror/All I see is pain/All I see is mother’s dragging children to their graves."

Elsewhere, Kreator rage against the world condition in the thrash vein of vintage Slayer or Metallica on tracks with titles like "Suicide Terrorist" and "Dying Race Apocalypse." The only trouble in this thrashadise comes when Petrozza overdoes the angst. And a few tracks, notably "Murder Fantasies" and "Under a Total Blackened Sky," seem little more than filler. But a dozen albums into their career, Kreator still have the speed and the substance.