Ελληνικά
Last Updated on 03:14 PM by Giorgos Tsekas
Genre: Thrash Metal
Country: Chile
Label: Candlelight Records
Year: 2015
Nuclear are finally back after five years, with the release of their new full length record “Formula for Anarchy”. Following the formula of previous albums, Nuclear presents us their newest, powerful and disappointing at the same time record.
The taste that “Formula For Anarchy” leaves you with is classic thrash with modern elements, which are in many moments tangled in a web along with hardcore and crossover that add a little more boost and an inch of variety to their tracks. The entire record is based on classic thrash forms with much tupa-tupa, propped on a basic riff that keeps the structure of each track tight and a fast solo close to the ¾ of each track’s total duration. There are nice sonic explosions with loud blastbeats on the drums and distinct bass lines that give depth, but all the tracks sound like one, as if the first track is on loop. Lyrically, Nuclear continue to follow and celebrate their anarchist ideology, with lyrics against the system, the disintegration of society, the desire for revolution and so on, which I personally think are tiresome. That doesn’t apply just in Nuclear’s case, to be frank, but this general commitment to these same lyrics is considered a plague for many bands out there. We’re not in high-school considering ourselves a united punch to the status quo; it’s tiring for Nuclear and other bands that are active and flourishing for over a decade now sticking with the same subjects. And beyond all that, the devotion to such issues seems to my eyes an extreme case of opportunism, following the well-played lead “Well, we’re dealing with the global crisis, everybody is angry, so they’ll dig some anti-government shit”. Hm. No, that’s enough. It’s one thing for your lyrics to deal with the everyday adverse circumstances and another to talk about “Corporate Corruption” and “Tough guys”. It’s a little bit obsolete, don’t you think? Anyway, I’ve been carried way, so that case is closed.
On the positive side of the record falls the cover artwork, with its extreme anti-Christian red-ish sketch, which could be used as an artwork for a Black / Death band, as well. Nice lines, nice colors, nice conception. Equally, we support the record’s clean and clear production, which hasn’t that overly modern approach, lacking character. It’s very decent. On the minus list of this work belongs the limited inspiration, musically and lyrically. Lyrically, I wrote a manifest in the previous paragraph. Musically, Nuclear marches on trails that have been overly used, especially during this era of thrash revival. On the other hand, it’s a pity that this is happening, since a band like Nuclear with an over a decade of history, always carries the risk of ultimately losing its character because it’s moving to the “one of the same thrash” category fast.
“Formula For Anarchy” is a pleasant album to listen to during one or two afternoons, just to check out what is happening but, personally at least, I don’t see it’ll stand through time.
3/6
