Protector Summon The Hordes CD  (Slipcase, 2026, High Roller Records)

Teutonic thrash metal veterans Protector deliver thier seventh devastating chapter in their long-running career with Summon The Hordes, originally released in 2019 and now receiving the deluxe reissue treatment from High Roller Records.

Summon The Hordes completes what can only be described as a classic hat-trick for Protector. Following their triumphant return to form with Reanimated Homunculus and its successor Cursed And Coronated, founding vocalist Martin Missy and the band's younger lineup once again hit the bull's-eye with an album that combines the raw spirit of 1980s thrash metal with renewed energy, precision and modern production.

Since 2011, Missy's younger bandmates have become an integral part of Protector, bringing a fresh perspective while maintaining a deep understanding of what makes classic 80s-style thrash so effective. Their contribution is particularly evident throughout Summon The Hordes, where aggressive riffing, driving rhythms and memorable songwriting combine to create an album that sounds firmly rooted in Protector's old-school identity without simply attempting to recreate the past.

A major factor in the album's character is the production of legendary German metal producer Harris Johns, whose work with some of the defining bands of the German thrash scene helped establish the sound of the era. For Missy, working with Johns was a long-held ambition. The two first met at a Protector show in Berlin in 2013, eventually bringing their collaboration to fruition several years later. The result is a powerful and uncompromising production that gives Protector's riffs, drums and vocals the weight and clarity they deserve while preserving the raw aggression associated with their classic material. Musically, Summon The Hordes moves effortlessly between crushing mid-tempo grooves and furious high-speed thrash. Three Legions demonstrates the band's ability to introduce groove without sacrificing aggression, while Meaningless Eradication delivers a relentless dose of old-school thrash metal intensity.

Two Ton Behemoth brings an especially heavy dimension to the album, while The Celtic Hammer pays tribute to the artistic legacy of Tom G. Warrior, further highlighting Protector's connection to the darker and more extreme side of the European thrash tradition.

Summon The Hordes is an album built around powerful riffs, aggressive vocals, driving rhythms and straightforward, headbanging songwriting. Rather than relying on nostalgia alone, Protector use their classic influences as the foundation for a revitalised sound that feels both authentic and immediate.

For fans of early German and Teutonic thrash metal, Summon The Hordes is an essential part of Protector's modern-era catalogue. It follows the band's resurrection with Reanimated Homunculus and Cursed And Coronated to form a particularly strong period in the band's discography.

This 2026 High Roller Records reissue gives collectors the opportunity to add Summon The Hordes to their physical collection in a premium slipcase edition, celebrating one of the most important albums from Protector's later era.

Recommended if you like: Sodom, Kreator, Tankard, Exhumer, Assassin, Darkness, Destruction, Possessed, Asphyx, and Demolition Hammer and other aggressive old-school thrash metal bands, also ideal for collectors of German thrash metal, Teutonic thrash, old-school thrash metal, underground European metal and High Roller Records releases.
 

Artist: Protector
Title:  Summon The Hordes
Label: High Roller Records
Catalogue Number: HRR670CD2
UPC: 4251267724390
Release Year: 2026
Duration: Album
Format: CD 
Packaging Type: Jewel Case
Condition: New & factory sealed
Special Attributes: Remastered Reissue

Tracklist:

1. Stillwell Avenue
2. Steel Caravan
3. Realm Of Crime
4. The Celtic Hammer
5. Two Ton Behemoth
6. Summon The Hordes
7. Three Legions
8. Meaningless Eradication
9. Unity, Anthems And Pandemonium
10. Glove Of Love