You gotta figure that the mean 'ol Piledriver is still smitten with the vile aftertaste of getting screwed over royally by Maze Music in the '80s for the hundreds of thousands of copies of Pile-catalog sold with virtually no return. 1985's Metal Inquisition was a landmark release in this country, complete with it's absurd cover artwork and fist-pounding anthems of angst and pseudo-frightening fiction. But the bad taste of this biz put Piledriver to rest after the so-so follow-up (Stay Ugly) in 1986. Well, The Exalted Piledriver has dragged his bad-ass outta the mud and painstakingly put together a group of unmerry gentleman, namely bassist Lobo El Fsnort, guitarist Kinky Pork Cream, drummer Glace Frothfritter to create more havoc under the album moniker Metal Manifesto. It's pushing 25 years since this writer first appreciated the power of the pile - we've all done our share of "growin' up" since the '80s, but the Piledriver mandate remains clear-cut, hardened clichés and all. Metal Manifesto is a driving thrashfest complete with their sense of humour in tact as 'Unsuck My Cock', 'Road Pigs' and the blistering retro-ness of 'When I Saw Your Face' attest. You know that they take themselves seriously, but they don't. Get it? However, it's the more upbeat and meaty 'I Am The One', 'Volatile', 'Battle Axe' and the glorious anthemic title track that set the tone and will no doubt have you running for cover as the mortar fire ensues. Metal Manifesto is a mix of unharnessed momentum and campy crunch, most exemplified in the machine-gun fury of 'The Things I Give'. Producer Neil Kernon (Cannibal Corpse, Nevermore) has brushed off enough graveyard residue to give Metal Manifesto a clean feel, Piledriver's grunts/groans and Kinky Pork Cream's leads are concise and shredding, while the entire affair comes across current. Pile snorts: "My metal manifesto 'til the day I die." Cheers to that bud!