Bulldozer, an Italian black/thrash metal band, has been called almost unanimously Italy's response to Venom. I'd like to put that comparison to rest, because to me, Bulldozer blows the socks off of Venom. Now, no offense to Venom, I know how important they were, and that I am in a minority of people who don't just worship Venom, but I really do believe Bulldozer has higher quality material. Bulldozer does what most Venom worshipers did, but on this release they defiantly have more of an identity, and I will expand upon how they have this identity later.
Bulldozer had many great albums, but none that reach the heights to IX. Bulldozer albums prior to IX have suffered from bad production. I know raw production adds to the black metal aesthetic but when the guitars volume changes when it isn't supposed to, then it becomes an issue. The mix here is balanced and the production is still very raw. This allows the instruments to roar, but still be at the correct volumes, an Issue their previous albums had.
IX's sound isn't quite black metal, but it's defiantly not thrash. It's somewhere in between. It is enough of both to appeal to thrashers and black metal fans alike, which as a fan of both I quite enjoy. The songs are mostly short, none go over 5 minutes, and most are between 2-4 minutes long. On a black metal album, this is essential, because rarely does black metal have enough diversity in its songs to stay interesting for much longer, how ever I do feel that some songs could have been "explored" deeper, and had more gotten out of them. Still, the results are fine anyway, so no real complaint.
The obvious highlights are "Desert!" and "Ilona the Very Best". These songs are fairly complex, have great riffs, and awesome guitar solos, provided by Andy Panigada. These solos are fairly long by black metal solo standards, but I wouldn't have it any other way, as they feel quite powerful and epic and really complete the songs. It is very rare for guitar solos to be so important in a black metal song, this is something different that this album does. That with the "not metal" instruments often used give this album a unique sound.
This is an album any thrash fan, black metal fan, or even speed metal fan, should own. They're other albums don't disappoint either. If you're just getting into thrash, black, or speed though, this album probably isn't for you, as it is fairly heavy. But if you're already into these sub-genres, this is a great album, and a must have for your collection.
Sample:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GY56MFgUkcg&t=103s
