By skillfully following up, and even improving upon, the very solid
Pay for Your Lies, 1991's
Mass Illusion brought a notable and unprecedented sense of stability to the career of Brazilian thrashers
Korzus -- nothing special for a successful band, perhaps, but no small feat for the heretofore struggling heavy metal outfit. Okay, so
Korzus' traditional speed metal style was already somewhat dated by international standards (and national, if you consider the peerless
Sepultura) circa 1991, what with the predominance of death metal and black metal in both the U.S. and Europe; but the fact they were late to the party shouldn't entirely detract from an otherwise impressive, maybe even career-topping effort from this hard-working quintet. By-the-book thrashers such as "Agony," "Blood for Blood," and the title track strike their chords closest to mighty genre stalwarts
Anthrax and
Exodus, while the sparser, more direct "Beyond the Limits of Insanity" anticipates the
Prong-like economy that would be further explored on future releases. Clearly, originality was never
Korzus' strong suit but, all told and excepting the requisite (but unnecessary) instrumental "Unpredictable Disease," and a questionable cover of comedy rockers
Ultraje a Rigor's "Inútil" (surely a "thank you" to the album's producer,
Ultraje leader
Roger Rocha Moreira),
Mass Illusion is an incredibly enjoyable old-school thrash record, and also an ideal starting point for new
Korzus fans.