Proving that South Florida is still home to thrash metal at its most aggressive, the Absence are a Tampa-based band whose furious guitar work, monstrous vocals, and pummeling rhythms have won them the approval of discerning fans of extreme hard rock. Signed to the Metal Blade label in 2005, the Absence released their first album, From Your Grave, later the same year, with Riders of the Plague (2007) and Enemy Unbound (2010) as their second and third full-lengths. ~ Mark Deming