review by: Jez Andrews

After hearing this splendid new live album, I began to wish that I had paid more attention to Overkill's Wacken set last year. They're not the greatest of thrash acts, but I've definitely seen worse. No one gets the short straw in this live sound, and the guitar work is most impressive.

"Necroshine" is a damn fine opener, and there isn't much I can say to slate the tracks that follow, other than I have been swayed far more by live recordings of Destruction and Testament. That said, there's no arguing the virtues of "Deny the Cross," "I Hate" and "Battle" in a live setting.

I've had a certain curiosity regarding Overkill ever since being greeted with the "Hello From the Gutter" video on MTV. A talented bunch, no mistake, and a band who are not afraid to stick with both the style and image with which they started.

It's the stuff that continues to be worshipped as it should be in Germany, and criminally under appreciated in this country. One of the grandest traditions of heavy music, and we've effectively brushed it under the carpet. But as long as the likes of Overkill and the other great thrash behemoths continue to wreak havoc, the leather, the patches, and the shaggy eighties manes will always have a place in this world.