I suppose it follows the law of diminishing returns. A post-millennium proliferation of Thrash bands has inevitably regaled us with a fair share of albums that sounded insipid or clinical. Once in a while, however, I do discover bands that inspire me to get my air guitar out of its dusty case and go back to nodding like a human jackhammer.

Into the latter context step Hidden Intent, a 3-piece from Australia that follow in the footsteps of Anthrax, Nuclear Assault, early Megadeth, Sacred Reich....hence you’ve got compositions based on staccato-type riffing, a pummeling rhythm section, furious guitar solos and ‘clean’ but screaming vocals. What’s not to like? Hidden Intent sound incredibly tight and their songwriting is almost spot on. Bassist/lead vocalist Chris McEwen peppers his Joey Belladonna style of singing with some impressive King Diamond screams. I wonder if he can do that live.

“Walking Through Hell” even possesses the self-deprecating humour of many 1980s Thrash bands (Anthrax, S.O.D., Tankard, Lawnmower Deth) – check out the final seconds of ‘Black Hole’ or the cheerily preposterous ‘Bass Wankage’, a 52-second instrumental track consisting solely of bass guitar.

At the end of the day, “Walking Through Hell” doesn’t provide any valid contribution to this music genre. It’s more of a loving tribute to a bygone era. But if any of the (admittedly many) names I’ve dropped in the review strike a chord with you, then you might not want to miss this.