Venom – From the Very Depths (Spinefarm, 2015)

Yes friends, I realize that hating on any Venom album that isn’t Welcome to Hell, Black Metal or At War with Satan is the cool kid thing to do. But, I’ve never been one of the cool kids, and as such I’ve found much to enjoy amidst Venom’s latter-day discography; even if those albums aren’t as ground-breaking as the first three, that doesn’t mean they aren’t entertaining. From the Very Depths is Cronos and Co.’s thirteenth full length, and although it’s by no means perfect, it’s certainly as enjoyable a slab of throwback heavy metal as you’re likely to encounter in 2015.

Venom remains oldschool in approach, polluting your ears with proto-thrashing odes to all things evil, but they’ve beefed up the recording quality considerably since their eighties heyday, and From the Very Depths might be the trio’s best-sounding album. Indeed, songs like the “The Death of Rock ‘n’ Roll” “Long Haired Punks” and the title track could’ve easily fit in on Black Metal from a musical standpoint, but they’ve been injected with sonic steroids due to the album’s modern production values. Some might scoff at a Venom album that doesn’t sound like it was recorded in Hell’s garage, but why should Cronos be forced to repeat himself when there are legions of bands aping the vintage Venom sound (see: Midnight, Toxic Holocaust, Children of Technology, etc.)?

One of my favorite aspects of Venom has always been the sense of playfulness that lies at the core of their infernal attack, and that playfulness is in full effect on From the Very Depths. Lyrics such as “Light up the Marshall stacks / We’re killing Kid Creole / With devastating thrash / The death of rock n roll” from the aforementioned “The Death of Rock ‘n’ Roll” serve to remind that Venom are all about rocking out and having a good time, and rock out they do for much of the album’s fifty-two minutes. Whether hammering their way through a speed-demon track like “Grinding Teeth” or plodding through a doomy number such as “Smoke,” the band makes it clear that their sole mission is to get heads banging and fists (and beers) raising.

From the Very Depths isn’t without its flaws; it’s too damn long and some of the tracks feel like filler. You can’t blame Venom for wanting to give fans a shit-ton of music for their hard-earned buck, but the album would be more effective if you shaved off some of the less interesting tracks such as “Temptation” and “Rise.” That said, there are scorchers a-plenty, and several of the tracks mentioned in the preceding paragraphs are among the best Venom have written since returning from the wilderness in 2006 with the uneven Metal Black. These minor drawbacks are by no means a deal-breaker, and don’t prevent From the Very Depths from being a blast to listen to.

Overall, Venom might not be the trailblazers they once were, but that’s no reason to pass on From the Very Depths. It’s a muscular, modern take on oldschool heavy metal that’s catchy and fun in spite of a few missteps. If Venom’s first three albums set the metal world on fire, then consider this a bulldozing victory lap amongst the still-smoldering ashes.