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Toxic Holocaust: Conjure and Command

Conjure and Command is relentless. Instead of the usual bright colours, the monochrome album cover suggests Joel Grind has changed the band's style to the ever-darkening side of metal. But the 2-minute barrage of 'Judgment Awaits You' quickly puts to rest any notion of change with its furious riffs, fast, aggressive drumming, and Joel's lethal vocals. The doom groove that opens and closes 'Agony Of The Damned' sandwiches more charging thrash riffs and pummelling drums. With the killer "The bitch will be burned at the stake" hook-line, the fast and abrasive 'Bitch' is where the album shifts up a gear or two, the riffs blazing throughout the whole song. Following three full-on thrash offensives, 'Red Winter' slows the pace down, but not much and not for very long, after about a minute it settles into a slow head-banging groove that soon shifts back into the high gears for the remainder of the song, the solo at 2:46 being signature Grind: simple, melodic, and perfect for the groove. 'Nowhere To Run's riffs and chorus are as infectious as those of 'Bitch' and will no doubt become the soundtrack to the destruction of many a venue. The darkly misanthropic 'I Am Disease' slows the pace down but is no less effective than what has already befallen, with Grind's harsh, raw vocal delivery further darkens the already bleak atmosphere. 'In The Depths (Of Your Mind)' is filthily coarse, as is 'The Liars Are Burning', the main riff of which is brimming with attitude. 'Revelations' begins with another incredible riff, the line "There is no god!" adding a bleak touch to the blast of bile. And 'Sound The Charge' is fast, pissed, and punishing. With savagely sick breakneck riffs, get-in-quick-and-get-out-even-quicker solos, and Grind's rabid vocals, Conjure and Command is bat-shit insane thrash from beginning to end.

Track Listing

  1. Judgment Awaits You
  2. Agony Of The Damned
  3. Bitch
  4. Red Winter
  5. Nowhere To Run
  6. I Am Disease
  7. In The Depths (Of Your Mind)
  8. The Liars Are Burning
  9. Revelations
  10. Sound The Charge

Added: November 27th 2011
Reviewer: Jason Guest
Score:
Related Link: Band Facebook
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Language: english

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Toxic Holocaust: Conjure and Command
Posted by Jeff B, SoT Staff Writer on 2011-11-27 17:24:50
My Score:

If heavy, relentless, and ass-kicking thrash metal is your preferred poison, you're probably familiar with American act Toxic Holocaust. Since its formation in 1999, this thrash outfit has evolved from Joel Grind's one-man band to a trio of full-time members. Conjure and Command, the fourth full-length effort from Toxic Holocaust, is also their first album with the lineup of Joel Grind (vocals and guitars), Nikki Bellmore (drums), and Phil Gnaast (bass). While not a terribly unique and memorable observation, Conjure and Command is an impressive slab of relentless thrash metal that should satisfy fans of the genre.

Toxic Holocaust plays a brand of thrash metal that, while still containing a few modern tendencies, relies mainly on the foundation set by the more extreme thrash acts of the eighties'. Expect plenty of furious riffs, pummeling drum patterns, and torturous vocals - this is the sort of album that's just perfect to get your blood pressure up! Conjure and Command is a pretty short album that clocks in at just over 32 minutes, but I personally love how quickly the album ends. A short, fast 'punch in the face' is exactly how a thrash album of this caliber should be packaged - and, thankfully, that's exactly how Conjure and Command is released. The raw production leaves plenty of room for gritty guitar tones and earthy drum sounds, and I personally love the way Conjure and Command is produced.

If we're being honest, Conjure and Command hardly brings anything to the table that any thrash veteran hasn't heard dozens of times before. Still, when the quality of the music is this high, it's hard to imagine a fan of thrash metal not having an absolute blast when giving this one a spin. Toxic Holocaust have crafted an album with enough fury-inducing riffage and angst-filled compositions to satisfy most metalheads, and I can confidently say that I'm glad to have heard Conjure and Command. While not the most unique or essential sentiment of modern thrash metal, this is a pretty great album worthy of 3.5 stars.



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