Review: In the rawest vein of primal thrash combined with the basic elements of black/death comes this dual CD containing the formative works from Nuclear Death, who in broken rhythms and violently driving blast beat mix prehistoric elements of life in the energy and epic ambition of this work, insinuating in the consciousness an awareness of a larger agenda than the immediate focus of most in this form of heaving blast. Bellowing hurl of vocal from Lori Bravo traces coloring within the rigid but organic framework of motion in song structure, throwing above the psychotic meditation of drums and turbulent guitar. All work executed well, the sum exceeds the value of its parts.
Blasting and frenetic, this music also pursues the skinned open nerve relentlessness of underground mythos and builds it with lyrics reflecting the gulf between the living and dead, in the epic deconstruction of all that is beautiful into conflict, and all conflict into a serenity of resolution. Earlier tracks approximate a dark and grandiloquent epic of Carcass-style grindcore more than any other influence, while some might compare this to early Blasphemy or Repulsion. Agile and direct these verses and structural changes to chorus cycle through the seasons of their own death, and each expresses a compact immersion in death and its aura in human subjugation. Perverse but worthy.
Both albums presented here demonstrate the growth and range of this band who were groundbreaking in their time but never achieved the distribution they needed, partially because of industry fear of LA-based Wild Rags records, who signed the original opus of Nuclear Death. Guitar textures and the screaming voice of dissent in thrash work together to enwrap a series of ideas in a poetic turnaround and resolution, found here within short tracks bearing passion in darkness.
