Following the bands debut release 'The Vermin Breed', Belgium metallers After All return with their new release 'This Violent Decline'.  This is a more polished affair than the previous album with the emphasis more on the production of the album, which has clearly brought out the best in the band.

The album opens up with ‘Frozen Skin’ and straight away the progress the band is plain for all to hear.  While the heavy thrash elements of the bands debut is still present, this time around they have incorporated more melodies into the After All sound, the result of which is quite an outstanding metal album.

The metal onslaught continues with ‘Violent Decline (Drawn To The Devil)’, a track full of power and controlled aggression.  A thing that some of the younger bands of today could bring into their music.  The guitars of Dries van Damme and Christophe Pepree are just fantastic and continue into the next track ‘Blackest Moon’.  Their ability to bring thrash melodies across without going over the top is superb.

The band go into Slayer mode with ‘Sacraments For The Damned’.  A speed fest that races along at breakneck speed while still remaining melodic in its overall sound.  A real treat for speed freaks.

The unwavering metal of After All continues with some of the best true metal I’ve heard for some time, with tracks like the stirring instrumental ‘Monolith #11’ that leads nicely into the fast paced ‘Ruins Of Bones’ and the hard hitting ‘To Haunt You’.  But it’s the pounding drums and relentless riffs of ‘The Harlot’ that really got my juices flowing on this album, with Piet Fecroul’s vocals at their most awesome.

The final two tracks of the album once again target the senses with their speed and majesty firstly ‘Blind Euphoria 2006’, finding Van Damme and Depree firing on all cylinders and drummer Kevin Strubbe thrashing out the rhythm as if his very life depended on it.

The final track sees the band in a completely different light with a more gentle track with Focroul giving a great haunting vocal performance on this one and the more serene guitars give this track a real edge, which all goes to round off a really impressive metal album of the highest calibre.