Terminate-Thirst For Obscene EP

I've been following Terminate for sometime, and you can say that this EP was nothing unexpected. These guys released a demo in 2011 which was frankly quite pleasing, but the EP shows that Terminate is stepping up their game in a fast pace. Among all the bands who worship the old school Swedeath sound, Terminate has to be the cathiest yet and not to mention that they have a ton of Bolt Thrower groove going on aswel. While the cover art may not have much to offer, the music on ''Thirst For The Obscene'' offers every single thing a Swedeath fan would want from his/her death metal.

Firstly let's talk about the production. The production enables the instruments audiable however it still shrouds the whole music in a curtain that is an instant reminscent of the old school sound. Along with gut ripping chainsaw guitar tone buzzing around all the time, there is no doubt that one will get the OSDM vibe that he/she wants from the production of this record. And the guitar tone and production is only  to begin with. When the vocals ensue over the vocals the album becomes hands-down crushingly catchy. And that was the real thing that surprised me. The level of intensity is so much that the chainsaw ripping guitar burst out vigorously in an attemt to lash out and plunge into the listeners heart like spears, thus pounding them into dust. The drums display alot of the pound n' slam style, acting like a whetstone to sharpen the already razor-sharp riffage. The gorrove, catciness and un-head-bangable spice of the EP is a great attractor on its own. ''Numb'' has some excellent moments of invidious ferocity with  high concentration on the dynamics and vocals shreiking at the background as if they were sang by a twisted maniac. The vocals are sort of more lower register Martin Van Drunnen, though at times they may tend to be raspier and more devastating. Terminate also likes to constantly alternate between fluctuated paces that determine their speed, which is usually pretty fast. There are only four originals on this EP, yet it can be hard for one to choose highlights. ''Numb'' is definetely the best song on the EP, while the short title track is just as effective with its catchy riffs, solid structure and memorable patterns that end things compendiously and sweet.

There are two cover songs on the six song EP, which I dare say are perfectly executed. If there wasn't for a tiny change in style on these two songs, one may easily mistake them for another Terminate original. The songs are Slaughter's ''Incinerator'' and Celtic Frost's ''The Usurper''. They are both heavily manipulated by Terminate's own distinct style and even sharpened with the buzzsaw guitar tone added to their properties. Terminate won more points from me for more than what I had expected before I listened to the album, and they are already on my list of ''Must get album when comes out''. This EP is hopefully just the beginning of a great Swedeath worshipping band, whose distict style may become ven more prevalent with upcoming releases.

Highlights:
Numb
Thirst For The Obscene
Drowned In Flames

Rating: 86,5%