Can't say I've ever really got this whole Redux thing.  Invariably it consists of the re-release of albums any genuine fans of the band concerned will already have.  Chuck in some demo's, a couple of video tracks, dig out some "exclusives" and try and extract more money from said fans for the sake of something they'll probably never get any value out of.  Cynical?

Maybe? maybe not?

So what we have here sort of follows the above path in that Kreator give their last album, 'Hordes Of Chaos', the Redux or in this case Ultra Riot treatment in the form of a nice little presentation box consisting of the digipack of the original release, along with two enhanced video tracks, a bonus CD of demos of 6 of the albums tracks and 2 cover versions, a poster, a photo book, a sticker, a postcard and money-off voucher for some merch.  Whether those extras will entice you to part with the best part of £30 is your shout, especially if you're in possession of the original album anyway.  If you're not then the question is why not?  When 'Hordes'... first came out last year it re-affirmed Kreator's place at the top of the European Thrash League, taking the blueprint from their 'Enemy Of God' return to form and cranking everything up tenfold. In short, it was and still is a fucking monster of an album, and as such I cannot recommend it enough.  If you haven't got it, it probably starts to weigh in favour of a possible purchase, though the standard version of the album would set you back less than half the price.  So do the extras deliver enough oomph to tip the balance?  Well let's see.

The bonus disc of demos and covers is OK.  The demos are what they are, but let's be brutal they're early versions of tracks on the album which whilst providing ample fodder for completists are far superior in their final formats on the album proper.  That said though, the cover versions are fucking stormers, both being great versions of their originals, with Germany punks Slime's 'Alle Gegen Alle' getting the treatment, and Mille probably fulfilling a lifetime dream in giving Bad Religion's 'You Are The Government' a great going-over.

The enhanced videos which have been added to the main album disc are also merely OK, 'Hordes Of Chaos' being bizarrely Manowar-like in it's imagery, whilst 'Destroy What Destroys You' contains some nice but fairly ordinary footage from recent gigs in Chile.  The other bits and pieces in the box-set present any buyers with the usual quandary of not really being able to make any use of them because once used the whole package effectively becomes "soiled", so again it really does lend itself to the completist as opposed to the straight ahead music fan.

However, in drawing this to a close, I must emphasise a very important fact, which should not get overshadowed by the commercial and aesthetic aspects of this release, and that is that 'Hordes Of Chaos' is a fucking great metal album, and should be in any extreme music fan's collection.  The title track, 'Escalation', 'Radical Resistance' et al are the stuff that Premier League bands are made of and are some of the best thrash of the last 10 years.  Whether they'll being winging their way into your mitts via this package though really is your call.

http://www.myspace.com/kreator