For those of you who are not familiar with the sound of After All; it’s pure thrash which reminds you of a familiar ‘rakketakketakke’ sound with a bit of modern influences, mainly out of the metalcore scene. The album really is a finished product with a lot of different components that will make you stay focused very easily. ‘Blackest Moon’ has got this über breakdown whereas ‘To Haunt You’ will make you do that pleasant sigh because of the variation in double bass drums. And then the guitar riffs, hell fucking yeah! They’re not too complicated, not the same during the entire record but still interesting enough to make an easy listener. Finally, Piet Focroul’s vocals aren’t that brilliant but he shows that he is able to combine both ways of singing, namely aggressive and clean like on the final track ‘Second Time Around’ in a fine way that isn’t bothering this time.

 

And that actually characterizes This Violent Decline best; the album is a very decent product from a band that has the experiences to come up with just good material that is interesting enough for almost forty minutes. No real highlights, but, and perhaps that is more important, no disappointments as well.