Electrocutioner — Harbinger Review
Electrocutioner, an American old-school Thrash Metal band formed in 2020, unleashed their second full-length album, “Harbinger,” on September 5th, 2025. Released independently in digital format and on CD through CDN Records.
The First Three Sins, The Summary
The Fourth Sin, Overall Discussion
Opening Detonation: Doomsday Device and the Thrash Onslaught Begins
The moment that play button is stuck, Electrocutioner’s opening hymn, Doomsday Device, unleashes a torrent of razor-wire thrash metal fury. A signature thrash scream pierces that air, instantly establishing the raw, aggressive tone. This initial assault is just the prelude. The subsequent eleven hymns on Harbinger are a relentless sonic odyssey, a whirlwind tour through the very heart of old-school thrash metal.
Thirty Minutes of Fury: Harbinger’s Old-School Thrash Devotion
Harbinger itself is a thirty-minute epic. It’s a blistering, fast and technically adept journey. Expect crushing instrumental compositions that are arranged with meticulous, almost surgical, precision. This is thrash metal forged in the fires of raw power. The devilmanship is tight, locked-in, and explodes with a pure, pure beer-soaked, gang-shouted energy. It’s a visceral throwback to the golden era, echoing the sonic blueprints of legends like Slayer, Testament, Exorcist, and Whiplash.
This is not the polished sound of today. It’s gritty, analogue-feeling, and built for maximum impact when blasted from the worn-out speakers of a beat-up pickup truck.
Raw by Design: Production That Channels the Basement Show Spirit
Electrocutioner’s production on Harbinger is a jewel of intentional rawness. It’s not sloppy, but it is undeniably raw, yet refined by modern clarity. This approach captures perfectly the DIY spirit that defined early thrash metal records. The mix prioritises the searing guitars and the ferocious vocals. The drums and bass provide an unshakeable foundation, a solid backbone that, while perhaps less prominent, is essential to the overall assault.
There’s a definite lo-fi charm at play here. It gives the album the distinct feeling of a live set, captured in a sweat-drenched, basement show. It’s an immersive experience.
Riff Rituals and Sonic Dynamics: The Guitar-Driven Core
The instrumental core of Harbinger is built on solid composition and arrangement. The guitar work serves as the very lifeblood of the chaos. Mark Pursino’s playing is a powerful conduit for the spirit of East Coast thrash. He expertly blends blistering speed with a driving groove and an undeniable grit. The guitar tone is raw, crunchy, and feels utterly analogue, as if dialled in on a dusty Marshall stack. Forget digital polish; this is pure, unadulterated distortion with serious bite. The riffs are short, punchy, and incredibly hook-driven.
There’s a clear sense of dynamic pacing. Songs build tension, explode into breakdowns, and then erupt anew. Solos are deployed sparingly but with devastating effect. When they arrive, they are chaotic and fast, prioritising raw attitude over technical wizardry.
Hymns like Doomsday Device feature blistering speed and licks that powerfully evoke Slayer’s manic energy. The mid-paced stomp riffs found in Lightning Sacrifice offer a brief respite, a moment to catch your breath before the next sonic barrage. Even moments of melodic restraint, as heard in Frozen File, showcase intricate phrasing and a more emotive touch, proving there’s depth beyond pure aggression.
Amidst the relentless aggression and chaos, Vision I—the seventh track—offers a rare moment of respite. Clocking in at under a minute, this instrumental interlude serves as a brief, eerie pause, a spectral breath before the sonic violence resumes with renewed fury and darkness.
Low-End Depth: Bass and Synths as Atmospheric Anchors
Rich Nieves’ bass playing is a subtle yet vital element. It adds a layer of depth and grit that perfectly complements the guitar tone. His tone is thick and gritty, often mirroring the guitar riffs to reinforce the low-end impact. It’s not flashy, but it is foundational. You feel its presence more than you necessarily hear it, particularly during breakdowns and slower, more atmospheric passages. Moments of synth-driven dread punctuate the chaos, offering brief, eerie respites before the band detonates again in a final explosion of speed and darkness.
Controlled Chaos: Drumming That Drives and Disorients
Tyler Bogliole‘s drumming is the relentless heartbeat of the record. He drives the momentum forward and masterfully shapes the overall dynamics. His double-kick work is employed liberally, especially in the climactic sections of songs. The snare drum is tight and punchy, cutting through the mix with the sharp crack of a whip. Sudden tempo shifts and aggressive fills keep the listener perpetually on edge. There’s a thrilling unpredictability to his playing; it’s controlled chaos at its finest.
Individual hymns further showcase the album’s sonic diversity. Tracks like Heaven’s Gate lean heavily into groove, with stomping beats that firmly anchor the powerful riffs. Final Prophet and Seven Seals of Koresh significantly ramp up the speed. They feature blast-like sections and frantic, high-energy cymbal work that pushes the intensity to new heights.
Vocals of Collapse: Barked Verses and Gang-Shouted Fury
Tyler Bogliole‘s drumming is the relentless heartbeat of the record. He drives the momentum forward and masterfully shapes the overall dynamics. His double-kick work is employed liberally, especially in the climactic sections of songs. The snare drum is tight and punchy, cutting through the mix with the sharp crack of a whip. Sudden tempo shifts and aggressive fills keep the listener perpetually on edge. There’s a thrilling unpredictability to his playing; it’s controlled chaos at its finest.
Individual hymns further showcase the album’s sonic diversity. Tracks like Heaven’s Gate lean heavily into groove, with stomping beats that firmly anchor the powerful riffs. Final Prophet and Seven Seals of Koresh significantly ramp up the speed. They feature blast-like sections and frantic, high-energy cymbal work that pushes the intensity to new heights.
Mark Pursino‘s vocals are rough, aggressive, and possess a primal quality. He delivers barked verses with a distinct punk-like cadence. Gang vocals are a constant presence, with shouted refrains that create a communal and riotous atmosphere. The vocals sit high in the mix, often layered with those powerful gang shouts for maximum impact. They tear through lyrics that explore themes of spiritual collapse, cosmic dread, and sacrificial transcendence. The lyrics are cryptic yet intensely evocative, perfectly suited for the thrash metal genre.
Sonic Scripture: A Track-by-Track Descent into Ritual and Reckoning
Electrocutioner’s Harbinger unfolds like a thrash metal prophecy, each track a chapter in a descent toward spiritual collapse and apocalyptic reckoning. It begins with the explosive Doomsday Device, a sonic detonation that sets the tone for the ritualistic fury of Lightning Sacrifice and the cultic devotion of Heaven’s Gate. The haunting introspection of Frozen File gives way to the ominous proclamation of Harbinger, while Final Prophet delivers the last warning before chaos reigns.
A spectral breath arrives in Vision I, only to be shattered by the nihilistic sprint of End of Days and the mythic charge of The Chariot. Azazel dives into forbidden knowledge, and Seven Seals of Koresh channels cultic obsession into a sprawling sermon of doom. Finally, Vision II closes the ritual with a ghostly echo, leaving the listener suspended in dread. Together, these twelve hymns form a sonic scripture of collapse, conviction, and cosmic violence.
Final Verdict: Harbinger as a Bloodied Testament to Thrash’s Future
Overall, Electrocutioner’s Harbinger doesn’t just revive thrash—it drags it kicking and screaming into the present with bloodied fists and blistered fretboards. This 36-minute assault is a fruit of art expression of raw aggression, channelling the fury of East Coast legends while carving its own jagged path through the genre’s sacred ground.
Final Benediction: The Last Three Sins and Closing Reflections
As Harbinger reaches its final, blistering moments, the sonic chaos fades—but its impact remains scorched into memory. Before we wrap up, we want to give a shoutout to Electrocutioner for letting us dive deep into their thrash metal sermon.
The Fifth Sin, The Memorabilia
The Sixth Sin, The Artwork
The Seventh Sin, Disrelish
Electrocutioner
Mark Pursino — Guitars, Vocals, Synths
Rich Nieves — Bass
Tyler Bogliole — Drums