Chicago thrashers Bloodletter return with their latest offering, Leave The Light Behind, ten blistering tracks that span thirty-four minutes of fully engaging Thrash Metal. An album that fully commanded my attention, why? Because it is a catchy-as-hell listen, thanks to a mix of classic Thrash and modern Melodeath, shaped into well-crafted and delivered tracks.
Bloodletter – Leave The Light Behind
Release Date: 25 July 2025
Words: Jools Green
The lyrics are rife with supernatural threats and cosmic beasts, as well as the spectres of depression and mental illness, creating an atmosphere, from a lyrical perspective, of otherworldly dread, reflecting a world of darker shadows and lurking horror.
Musically, it is largely contrasted by the thrash-orientated, up-tempo and engaging drive to the sound, which grabs your attention. Here, you will notice there is also a delightfully dark undercurrent lurking in within the shadows of the music, reflecting the lyrics as necessary. This definitely offers the best of both worlds as far as I’m concerned.
“This time around, we wanted to take the melodic riffing from our 2020 release Funeral Hymns album and the brute force and speed of 2023’s A Different Kind Of Hell and really blend the two more,” vocalist/guitarist Pete Carparelli told us. “We wanted to shoot for more grandiose and dramatic arrangements while still keeping the elements of the core Bloodletter sound: speed, harmonized riffs and themes that can get stuck in your head.
“We pushed ourselves performance-wise, tried new vocal techniques and really tried our hardest to go further than we have before musically.” There is no doubt in my mind that, from the very first playthrough, they have met that remit perfectly.
Opening on A World Unmade, which has a great crunchy thrashy drive, I love the vocals. They are clear and clean but vitriolic, and you get great melodic leads that meld well with the vocals, adding depth to the track.
The half lead work burst is sumptuously soaring. First track in, and I cannot imagine how this album can get any more engaging, but it does.
On Blackened Wings keeps the pace going, the blood-curdling scream over addictive repeat riffing setting the tone of the piece. Again, it is a great thrashy driver with more catchy riffs to grab your attention, and the second-half scream heralds a superb swathe of leadwork.
The album continues to drive with Eternal Winter, the drum work adding extra punch and the riffs coming in sharp and precise. The next piece, Terminal, comes in darker from the offset, a hugely moving piece that looks at personal turmoil, the lyrical theme heavily reflected in the mood of the guitar work.
The next two pieces look at matters more supernatural and otherworldly. Firstly, the sharp and punchy Unearthing Darkness with its addictively dark and groovy undercurrent and driving wave of second-half lead work, which soars menacingly. Followed by the dark and sinister driver Hunting Horror, I love the dramatic and powerful drop in the second half, out of which the lead work spirals as it rebuilds in pace.
The urgent driver, The Black Death, charges forth unrelentingly from end to end, the melodic undercurrent grabbing you and dragging you along in its wake. The second half lead work is suitably dark and sombre to tie in with the lyrical content.
Taking things slightly slower, darker and more otherworldly, Call Of The Deep One weaves an unnerving tale of something lurking beneath the water. It is a dramatically phrased piece musically with some great unsettling qualities.
Faster in pace, the mood stays dark with The Burial. The leadwork is haunting, the pace is unrelenting, and the lyrics are sombre. It is an excellent listen.
The final offering, Night Terrors, features guest solo work by Nate Madden of Black/Sludge Metal Crust outfit Immortal Bird. It is reflective and haunting to open, building into bleak chugging waves of riffs, quickly turning catchy with an engaging groove lurking in there whilst still keeping the dark atmosphere. Nate’s solo is positively sumptuous, the track and album ending on a sombre, haunting keyboard outro that fades to nothing.
Leave The Light Behind is a superbly engaging listen end to end and I am not sure what I love most, the vocals or the superbly flamboyant guitar work. I am not even going to attempt to pick a favourite track.
Bloodletter release Leave The Light Behind on 25 July 2025 via Wise Blood Records. It will be available as CD, limited edition cassette, limited edition Vinyl (choice of 2 colours) or digital download from Bloodletter at Bandcamp.
