No matter what adversity, tragedy and shifting industry tides might’ve hit Euclid, Ohio-borne heavy metal quartet Destructor over the years it’d never crippled their ability to sound exactly like themselves. In truth these power-thrashing underground legends won the battle of attrition and endurance long ago, having proven themselves and the strength of their pure heavy metal personae within several releases beyond their reformation over twenty years ago. Yet as we step back into their realm for a sixth full-length album the profundity of their steadfast handicraft and its ever-high standard for traditional heavy metal songwriting cannot help but impress, giving the old ways another kick in the ass which yet bleeds of authenticity and continues reigning on undaunted. ‘Blood, Bone, and Fire‘ is exemplar by design, a fully charged and rousing heavy metal experience which doesn’t waste a second of its breath, shaking both fists at the crowd and firing off in a way which reinforces a legacy gratefully revived and upheld.

Destructor formed in 1984 and all signs pointed to their work casting a long shadow off the jump, playing a raw form of speed metal and NWOBHM inspired heavy metal high in enthusiasm and drive as they cranked out a rehearsal-pulled demo tape and an extended live cassette before getting to work on their debut LP for short-lived Cleveland-based and metal DJ run label Auburn Records where they were paired with a burgeoning scene of heavy/power and up-and-thrashing groups like Havoc, Purgatory, Breaker and Shok Paris. The main thing that stands out to me today taking all of those groups into account is the heavier edge, their Venom-cum-Slayer aesthetic and thrashing attack which made them contemporaries of groups like Hallow’s Eve and Nasty Savage to some slight degree. In hindsight these folks had with less in common with the Priest inspired thrashers enjoying some popularity at the time on Metal Blade and more to do with the power of Manowar and the grit of Overkill when their classic debut ‘Maximum Destruction‘ finally hit in 1985. This was a high point for the group, eventually getting the vinyl edition of the album picked up by Roadrunner for the European market as they’d quickly gained notice for the record. From this point we can either choose to make Destructor‘s story all about a series of tragedies, or emphasize their will to survive.

DEEPER LISTENING: [x]

Purgatory: The power-thrash stepping stone from Jeff Hatrix before he’d formed Hatrix and eventually horror/alternative metal ensemble Mushroomhead. ‘Tied to the Trax‘ (1986) was another important release from the Auburn records stable and remains a good example of that time and place.

Agent Steel: Probably the most viable comparison to what Destructor were doing at the same time, ‘Skeptic’s Apocalypse‘ enjoyed broader exposure between Combat and being similarly picked up by Roadrunner around the same time. A definite “if you like this… try that” recommendation both ways.

Also check out: Nasty Savage ‘Nasty Savage‘ and Hallows Eve ‘Tales of Terror‘ for their heavier circa ’85 riffing.

Some random dude from a nearby bar crashed Destructor‘s New Years party at their rehearsal space back in 1988, got kicked out, and he retaliated by stabbing bassist Dave Holocaust to death. It was understandably a massive trauma for the band and a point of breakage for the group. They’d held onto some tapes from the second album they’d been demoing with that line-up at the time and went through several roster changes in the next few years. As far as I’ve gathered the drummer who’d played on Terror‘s ‘Targeted For Assassination‘ tape joined the band during a point of revival in 1992 and that same year committed a murder-suicide… At that point I’m guessing the dream had kinda died even before that happened and the music industry had moved on years prior. Without having been there I suppose the most anyone should say today is, well, “That’s fucked.” and it is a wonder that anyone gotten past that level of trauma and defeat enough to soldier on. In fact for the last two decades they’ve done just that and carried on the legacy of the group’s original sound without falter.

The surviving members reconvened in 1999 and recorded a demo before being joined by Athenar (then of Boulder, pre-Midnight) for their next two records. The most notable moment I’d point out here in building up toward their latest record is the high energetic crush of ‘Sonic Bullet‘ (2003) where it shouldn’t go without saying that they still knew what heavy metal sounded like and before, then, and today Destructor still sounded exactly like themselves. Sure they had the double-bass drums kicking on a few songs and all that but if you were going to namedrop a comparison over the next fifteen years it’d still likely be somewhere in the realm of Overkill, Agent Steel, and perhaps Holy Terror for the NWOBHM inspired melodicism which creeps into their work more and more. If I had one criticism of their post-2003 output it’d probably just be the album art mostly sucked until ‘Decibel Casualties‘ (2017) but their music never lacked, never appeared bent from its purpose and not matter who was in the crew or how big the budget ways the strong personality of Destructor was there and it has remained effective. I’d echo their incorruptible nature first and foremost as we go on exploring the tightly wound, masterfully presented 80’s U.S. power-thrash of ‘Blood, Bone, and Fire‘ today, easily one of the all-around best works from these folks to date.

Setting a best foot forward with a perfectly representative opener/title track “Blood, Bone, and Fire” revs all engines with its NWOBHM-gone-speed metal attack, tightly winding its heft around its chorus and shoving the way forward into the more confrontational stomp of “Iron Clad”. There we find Dave Overkill still has it, the charisma to pull off a real thrashing anthem while also bringing an epic/mid-80’s power metal stroke to his cadence as if this particular song had been recorded in the late 80’s. His vocals carry the bulk of the album’s melodic development in stride, especially as this faster paced and aggressive side of the two guitarist’s work whips up a more urgent result for most of Side A, the peak of it all being the barging-through pace which opens the otherwise tuneful “Never Surrender”. That high energy salvo which bursts through the door to introduce ‘Blood, Bone, and Fire‘ should effectively prove convincing enough for any die-hard fan of 80’s heavy metal and especially those who happily dabble in the speed/thrash metal realm. From that point despite all of the myriad ways a good solid traditional heavy metal album -could- go wrong in 2023 Destructor pull this one off without a single hitch.

Though I’m not sure it’d be too far a stretch to consider ‘Blood, Bone, and Fire‘ the most melodic of Destructor‘s output Side B is slightly more concerned with memorable, catchy and anthemic pieces. If nothing else the power metal side of the band is at its most accomplished, of-the-moment yet ancient as we cut through the inspiring highs of closer “Dominate” after the charm of the mid-80’s Maiden-esque vocal melodies of “Heroic Age” and the kick of the German power/speed metal attack of “Hammering the Steel” prime a grand finale from the full listen. It may seem trite to suggest that a very traditional craft such as this works because it is economically presented, honed for impact and without waste, but this observation should moreso suggest a highly refined ‘cut the crap’ approach with plenty of vivifying speed to keep things rolling along at a satisfying clip. There is no dip in energy, no soppy ballad, but rather an all-killer Destructor record which doesn’t fuck around for a second as its ~36 minute ride powers through. This one’ll have to score just a few notches higher than the previous album thanks to an especially good album cover art, strong production values, and a brief yet repeatable full listen. A high recommendation.

---