DESTRUCTION - Metal Discharge
September 19, 2003, 21 years ago
(Nuclear Blast)
The third studio outing since Schmier and Mike new millennium reconciliation, begins with a thinly produced drum sound (a la Metallica's St. Anger), but unlike the Bay Area millionaires, the Germans fix the problem on the opening 'The Ravenous Beast' within a few seconds. The ten cuts drip vitriol from start to finish, the only downshift coming in the early, mid-tempo portion of 'Ripping The Flesh Apart'. Definitely a more musical record (notice the groove throughout 'Mortal Remains'), yet somehow also consistently brutal. Mike drops some tasty guitar runs/solos into the mix as well. 'Savage Symphony Of Terror', 'Desecrators Of The New Age' and 'Historical Force Feed' walk a familiar lyrical path, but Schmier's enunciation is such these lyrics are discernible. Never afraid of controversy, Destruction add some outspoken criticism of global situations within the tracks.