Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
Who would be the Last Man Standing when the sound of war finally gives way to peace, who would want to be the final piece on the chess board when all around has been scattered to the four winds and the prospect of further engagement with an invisible army is as assured as night following day, of Alice trailing the time-obsessed white rabbit into a psychedelic adventure.
The Last Man Standing deals with the guilt and all the rage that still courses through the body after the wings of war have receded for a while into the background, too often the spaces in the line are in greater number than the will to broker peace, and whilst the drums of battle may be an intoxicating feast for many, for some it is the sense of Overkill which spurs them on.
The initial shot fired from the soon to be released new album by Overkill, the tempting and soul rattling Last Man Standing is perhaps one of the band’s finest and one that no doubt puts the lure of drama out into the world for the first time without the necessary worry of what might come in the shape of The Wings of War, the battle is joined and it is one that is truly engaging and glorious.
Bobby ‘Blitz’ Ellsworth’s vocals rampage throughout the song, the feeling of desecration is hammered home as the drums and bass, supplied by Jason Bittner and D.D. Verni respectfully sends showers of napalm over the listener’s soul, the cry for help a system wide pulse as Dave Linsk’s and Derek Tailer’s guitar’s follow in their wake, mopping up any resistance to the appreciation in what Overkill have achieved in making this single and the album to come.
Last Man Standing is rage and invitation to witness the such proclamations of war, it is a single that firmly, and with pleasure, sees Overkill firmly establish once again their position as one of New Jersey’s finest.
Overkill release their 19th studio album, The Wings of War, on February 22nd via Nuclear Blast. Overkill come to the U.K. and Ireland in support of the album in March, where they play in London, Dublin and Glasgow.
Ian D. Hall