TOXIC HOLOCAUST - Conjure And Command [Review]

Genre: Thrash Metal

Label: Relapse Records

Release-date: July 19th, 2011

Reviewer: Monish Shringi

When you hear of a band named Toxic Holocaust, you know you’re in for something extremely aggressive, heavy, skull crushing and destructive. And it’s very much so. Formed in 1999, the band started with a few demos and splits, before finally releasing their debut album “Evil Never Dies” in 2003. Joel Grind has been their main protagonist, writing and recording all of their material right from their debut album to “Hell on Earth” in 2005 and “An Overdose of Death” in 2008. However, their latest release entitled “Conjure and Command” features a full line-up instead of Grind doing all instruments and vocals by himself.

The new album has a very aggressive and dark tone. It features both fast and slow tempo songs, which I believe is a good balance and is appreciated by most listeners. I couldn’t help but notice the similarities in the artwork as compared to that of Behemoth’s “Evangelion”, but it sticks to the overall theme quite well. The guitar tone is quite warm, which suits the style perfectly. I quite enjoyed Grinds’ mushy yet distinctive vocals throughout the album.

The album kicks off with “Judgement Awaits”, a non-remorseful, thrashy and hard hitting track which will instantly get heads shaking. There seemed to be quite a lot of Slayer and Exodus influence, especially in the tracks “Nowhere to Run” and “In the Depths(Of Your Mind)”, yet they both are equally unique in their own ways. I’m quite a fan of dark, groovy and slow tempo songs, so the tracks “Agony of the Damned” and “I Am Disease” were much to my fondness. Solos on the album were quite enjoyable, although they could have been longer and more iconic.

My favourite song in the album had to be “Bitch”. It is a must hear for every metal head out there! It’s one of those which truly define the elements of rage, aggression and violence. Personally, it made me want to run a riot and shatter glass endlessly.

Overall, this album brought about a more developed and mature sound as compared to the previous albums. The tracks sounded more complete, broad and provided an efficient overall finish. An avid thrash metal fan certainly cannot miss this, especially if you tend to listen to a lot of Exodus, Kreator, Slayer and Venom.

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