Not many bands can pride themselves on never succumbing to mediocrity and only ever producing masterpieces, but Annihilator is one of the rare few. The man responsible is their leader, the undisputed guitar-god known for his one-of-a-kind playing techniques, Jeff Waters. In addition to being a skilled composer, he is back once again as lead vocalist for the band’s grand return on this album. Ballistic, Sadistic is a real gem that puts to one side the experimentation that Waters had been revelling in these past few years and takes us back to the band’s roots. It’s an album that is criminally technical and precise and is vintage Annihilator through and through. As always, there are bound to be complainers but it’s hard to deny that these tracks, especially the turbo-charged The Attitude, are perfect examples of thrash metal the way it should be. Waters has really stepped up his game here and become more adventurous with his vocals on this album, sounding somewhere between a Dee Snider and Dave Mustaine in his younger days. Catchy and packed full of aggression and raw energy, Ballistic, Sadistic is the proof that thrash certainly hasn’t had its day and that Annihilator is still one of the most underrated bands out there. © Maxime Archambaud/Qobuz