It takes a lot of balls to go up into the Bay Area, where Thrash Metal really broke out from, and proclaim that you are starting a new movement of Thrash. Yet, that's exactly what Metal Blade's HATCHET did. Along with a couple other bands in the area, HATCHET helped launch the NWOBAT (New Wave Of Bay Area Thrash). Big words from an unknown band, especially when you consider that bands like EXODUS, TESTAMENT and DEATH ANGEL are all still in the area and are as strong as they've ever been. Given this fact though, it forced HATCHET to either be brilliant or be laughed at. Fortunately for them, they chose the former.

"Awaiting Evil" is an album that will have the oldest old school SLAYER fans jumping for joy, as they may be the first ever band to capture that blood thirsty hungry that broke them in the first place. With a musical sound that is raw, aggressive and vicious, HATCHET comes off like a SLAYER meets DEATH ANGEL hybrid that just flat out destroys from start to finish. In fact, "Awaiting Evil" truly feels like it was recorded in the mid to late 80s as well; the production being a bit cheap without coming off flimsy at all. Vocalist Marcus Kirchen is the primary force behind this album. His voice is very reminiscent of DEATH ANGEL's Mark Osegueda as he tears through menacing rockers like "Frozen Hell". On this song in particular, he features not only the same basic register as Osequeda, but a lot of the snarling and squeals that dominated many early thrash records. Kirchen is not trying to be perfect here. Instead, he just pours his soul into this material with a hunger so rarely experienced in recorded music anymore.

In many ways, the guitars of Julian Ramos and Sterling Bailey could be better, but I'm glad they aren't. Songs like "Attack Imminent" and "Frailty Of The Flesh" are a bit sloppy with their high speed riffs, but given the material they are playing, you can't help but appreciate it. Musically, a lot of this sounds like better recordings of "Haunting The Chapel" or "No Life 'Til Leather" as far as the rawness of the musicianship goes. That's a good thing. Drummer Alex Perez is clearly playing on a very cheap kit, and the sound he captures is fast, steady and a bit reckless, but he keeps things lurching forward. Overall, this band is not perfect, but truly do remember what thrash was about in the glory days. Clearly for HATCHET, the desire and hunger outweighs the technical re-workings that would almost certainly have ruined this album.

Overall, it's clear that HATCHET knows exactly what they wanted to capture. They've done a brilliant job at capturing it. A bit sloppy but sharp and vicious, "Awaiting Evil" is one of those albums that so many fans of this genre hope for. Without question, this band remembers the better days of Thrash folklore. They clearly are one of the forerunners of the NWOBAT.