Over the last decade, there has been an abnormal amount of
retro-thrash groups emerging and releasing albums or EP’s right away, and then
gradually end up being garbage due their huge lack of originality. Countless countries gave birth to an irrelevant amount of these retro-thrash bands, yet Portugal, for some reason has not brought forth any acts that were really worth listening. Not only that, but Portugal also lacks a strong metal scene in general, and I think Nuklear Infektion can really create a certain buzz in the Portuguese underground. Their demo, which was previously released, was fairly interesting an could be dubbed an another aspect of retro-thrash, but I certainly didn't expect this EP. It didn't necessarily blow me away, but the vicious, vivacious thrash madness here was something that drove me insane right away, and it also came with a strong arsenal of riffs, made from cold, hard steel.
Don't let the misspelled band name drown you in ridicule, because judging a the book by its cover is only the first mistake you'll do, and the consequences won't be pretty. This short, concise EP marches towards the listener with crushing, technical and headbang friendly riffs directly after the first signal of impact, without any delay. As I said, the riffs on this album come in a healthy abundance an all of them are equally tasty and sharp. The band can display good musicianship with some of their more technically proficient riffs and at the same time, they can scourge the whole battlefield with filthy, old school thrash, played in the vein of Vio-lence, Morbid Saint, Kreator and alike, and the best part about the EP is that the band also bestirs these technical, catchy riffs with the completely devastating death/thrash chompers, forming a unique wave of riffs that can sink their hooks into the listeners' flesh with no deviation, thus pulling them towards a chaotic orgy of headbanging insanity. ''We're On Command'' and ''Progress' Holocaust'' feature some creative, fun and catchy riffs played in arabic patterns, while ''The Dark Passenger'' is a furious track of pure death/thrashing mayhem, all keeping the listener hooked the whole way through with fresh riffs and arabic solos popping out of nowhere, spraying the music withe energy.
I love the ways the vocals burst through all of the chaotic riffing and scream with anger, though I can't help but notice that they can't be heard too well, simply because they sound as if they're being held back. They sound muffled, nonetheless still very vigorous. The vocal problem is nothing that can't be solved within the next release, and with even more pummeling riffs that were promised by the band, the malignancy and prominence of Nuklear Infektion will rise dramatically within the Portuguese underground metal scene. I can see almost no difference between this EP and ''Eternal Nightmare'', or any other straightforward, thrashing album. This EP's lethal and it shows that this band can evolve into something ferocious, and while it doesn't offer anything very innovative, it easily crushes all that modern thrash metal bullshit.
Highlights:
The Dark Passenger
We're On Command
Progress' Holocaust
Rating: 85,5%
Follow the Portuguese thrashers from Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/NuklearInfektion
No comments:
Post a Comment