Long-running Swiss band, Gurd, has been churning out its brand of thrash/groove metal since 1994. On its 11th full-length album, Fake, celebrating the band’s 20th anniversary, the quartet delivers 13 groove-laden tracks in the vein of Pantera, Pro-Pain and Machine Head. It’s a ’90s groovefest consisting of crunchy, down-tuned riffs with the swagger and attitude of any number of bands during this time period. Gurd balances their thrash influences with their groove metal elements and manages to do both pretty well. The band is more energetic, savage and more focused on this release compared to their last few. The raspy growls of V.O. Pulver sets the aggression level pretty high. The band also possesses some punk rock/hardcore qualities as well. There’s some great guitar playing from Pulver and other guitarist Pat, too; the riffs and the solos hit the mark perfectly.

The pulverizing “Wiped From The Earth,” the furious Reign in Blood-era Slayer riffing on “White Death”, and the hardcore-styled gang chants that pop up on tracks “Go For It”, “Hagridden” and “Strike ‘Em Down”, among others, are highlights of the album. But I’d have to say, “Hunter Of Dreams” and “Near Miss” absolutely slays. It’s on these Slayer-like moments (might as well throw in “Neglected”, too!) that the band really shine. Some minor gripes about the album is that it sounds a little too familiar and gets repetitive and redundant in spots. Plus, there’s just a tad too many tracks, causing the intrigue factor to wane a bit toward the back half of the album. Although Fake won’t set the world on fire, the band’s longevity and passion is commendable. Gurd is continuing its groove metal standards they set back in the day. It’s not a revolutionary album in the least, but if you want a quick ’90s groove metal fix that is raucous and fun, then Fake will do the trick. Killer album cover, too!