Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Review: Nuclear Death Terror - Total Annihilation

Band: Nuclear Death Terror
Album: Total Annihilation
Year: 2009
Genre: Crust Punk/Death Metal

Here we have a great EP from this Danish band, Nuclear Death Terror (NDT) who blend crust punk and death metal. While yes the vocal style of Adam and Cormac fit quite easily into the realm of death metal it’s the riffs and to a degree the drumming that give off the flair of crust influence.

Ok so we have 3 high quality tracks here. Immediately you can hear the crust in the riffs of Total Annihilation of the Self. The guitar riffs are also pretty catchy and have a bit of a groove to them in the vein of the old Swedish death metal bands of the early 90s. But it isn’t strange to hear crust riffs on Total Annihilation or the second song Mind Chain. Look and you will find a sound resembling Extreme Noise Terror and their album A Holocaust in Your Head.

The tracks can go from what is seemingly normal mid to fast pace, and they never let up on the speed. Whether by mistake or it’s just another influence of the band the third and final track sounds a lot like Realm of Chaos era Bolt Thrower at times, both in the drumming and riffs.

Vocally one of the guys uses a kind of shout that has a deep death metal sound to it. One of them screams a little bit higher than the other and the lower growling can seem perfectly fitting of a death metal band. Overall they are a fun mix of crust a death vocals that still sound punkish while retaining the brutality of death growls.

So this is probably what it would sound like if you mixed Extreme Noise Terror with Entombed or Bolt Thrower. You have the riffs laden with the catchy Swedish groove with clear elements of crust. The production is for the most part top notch though the vocals sometimes feel like they were put a little low in the mix. This is a nice short release and I’m sure those who enjoy Bolt Thrower’s earlier material will enjoy this band and album.

Score: 9/10
Standout Track: Any of them really

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