Vultures

Equal parts death metal and thrash metal, the California-based quintet Fate make a solid introductory statement with their 2008 debut for Metal Blade, Vultures. Although they may be comprised of some very young lads (the group originally formed five years before the release of Vultures while all of its members were still in middle school), Fate play like extreme metal professionals throughout. Instrumentally, the group has a knack for mixing guitar bits that incorporate both chunky riffing as well as sweep-picked flurries of notes (case in point, "Battle Grounds Beneath Our Feet" and "Ruins of Necropolis"), while the album opener, "Psychopathic Diary," comes off like a metallic Frankenstein — all different parts sewn together as one unhappy beast. And as with most new metal bands today, there's the now-obligatory nod to Iron Maiden, which in this case is the guitar harmony-heavy, all-instrumental title track.