Toxic Holocaust

Vornth – Black Pyres Review

Vornth – Black Pyres Review

“Formed in 2000, this quartet mulled about in obscurity for years, releasing only a demo and an EP before their self-titled debut in 2013. Sophomore LP Black Pyres shows these thrashers continuing to cook up Destruction riffs filtered through the blackened savagery of fellow Swedes Nifelheim.” File under: The Revenge of Black Phillip.

Bat – Wings of Chains Review

Bat – Wings of Chains Review

“Once upon a time there was a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. Today we get Wings of Chains by Bat, and they too bring the sound and fury, but in their case it definitely signifies something. That something being rowdy, sloppy and ill-tempered speed metal guaranteed to make old timers grin in gruesomely gap-toothed glee.” Break these chains of…wings?

Parasit – A Proud Tradition of Stupidity Review

Parasit – A Proud Tradition of Stupidity Review

“Ah, April. The air is crisp, the baby animals are frolicking – and apparently, the Swedish Crust Machine has gone into overdrive. For those who didn’t get enough of a D-beating from Victims’ latest album, Parasit is here to belch a layer of grime and bathroom scum all over your precious springtime paradise with sophomore LP A Proud Tradition of Stupidity.” Where did all this shaving flotsam come from?!

Suppressive Fire – Bedlam Review

Suppressive Fire – Bedlam Review

“The Raleigh-based power trio of Suppressive Fire plays a brand of fun and slightly blackened thrash that skips the pizza entirely. Culling mainly from the “devil metal” of Nunslaughter, Nocturnal Breed’s Fields of Rot, and producer Joel Grind’s main outfit Toxic Holocaust, this is a modern take on thrash, infused with more extreme elements but still being rooted in the ethos of the harsher end of the classics spectrum.” So, can this debut differentiate itself in the early days of 2016?

Gravewürm – Doomed to Eternity Review

Gravewürm – Doomed to Eternity Review

“Thirty years past its prime, Gravewürm’s songwriting and musical delivery continues to leave a lot to be desired, and after twenty-five years of existence and ten full-lengths, I ask myself the same question before every Gravewürm release: does Gravewürm have anything new—anything at all—to offer in their newest output?” That’s a really good question.

Bonehunter – Evil Triumphs Again Review

Bonehunter – Evil Triumphs Again Review

“Admittedly, when I think of punk-infused thrash, I think of how Toxic Holocaust’s Hell on Earth release a decade ago planted its seed of bad demeanor in my ear. From there this seed took root and blossomed as a love for (most) of Toxic Holocaust’s succeeding releases.” Can Bonehunter steal the Doctor’s love like a thief in the night?

Bio-Cancer – Tormenting the Innocent Review

Bio-Cancer – Tormenting the Innocent Review

“Frankly, decent thrash metal has been hard to come by in recent years. Sure there’s been some gems along the way and several stalwarts and rising upstarts have dished up quality albums. But overall the genre that sparked my interest in metal in the first place has provided slim pickings. Fortunately Greek thrashers Bio-Cancer are here to breathe some much needed life into the genre with their interesting blend of razor sharp extreme thrash.” Blackened thrash from Greece sounds like just what the doctor ordered to chase away those winter doldrums.

90s Metal Weirdness: Bruce Dickinson – Skunkworks

90s Metal Weirdness: Bruce Dickinson – Skunkworks

“Cast your minds back to a time when metal music was not cool. Nay, indeed, a time when metal was anathema to all that was considered to be “chic” and “in.” A time when your favorite bands were actually encouraged by the music industry to play slower, cut their hair, and write sensitive lyrics about their childhoods. Yes, this unfortunately really happened. Our new semi-irregular feature “90s Metal Weirdness” focuses on albums released between 1992 and 2001 and which we all probably would rather forget. But in the service of publicly shaming the musicians involved, we have pushed forward.” And how dare we accuse the Crown Prince of NWoBHM of weirdness? Oh, we dare, but it’s all very British and polite like.