It’s something of an accomplishment to come up with an album cover that’s somehow more offensive than Spinal Tap’s Smell The Glove. But Generichrist might just have done so with the artwork for their new album, Taste of Death, which features a jacked, maggot-dripping redneck zombie receiving fellatio from a scantily clad lady-of-the-night, whom he’s moments away from killing. So yes, they came hard out of the gate…but can the music actually back it up?
The answer? Yes—and perhaps better than you might expect. On their second LP in three months, the Tampa quintet serves up a meaty slab of death/thrash with a more-than-generous helping of sleaze and horror. (Even capped off with a guest appearance by horror legend Bill Mosely.)
Taste of Death opens ominously; church bells ring while a priest nasally delivers a poem as a body is lowered to its final resting place and a woman weeps in the background. The music then descends into a speedy, thrash metal tornado, accompanied by guitar solos drenched in mid-range frequencies. The vocals bounce between shrill, over-the-top screams and lower, more hardcore-influenced utterances frequently—all laced with an excessive amount of profanity. At its roots, Generichrist is a punk band obsessed with speed and thrash metal, and influenced by hardcore and horror films.
The strongest tracks here—“Taste of Death,” “Kill Your Parents,”—all reveal a band that is clearly capable of less campy music and production techniques. At just over two minutes, “Nazi in Blue” is the shortest track, and reveals the punkier side of the band’s roots as they hurl lyrics burdened with teenage angst toward police officers. It’s strangely anthemic when Tony Anderson shrieks “fuck the pigs! or “protect and rape!”—his sentiments firmly imprinted on his sleeve.
I’m not sure what you might have expected after seeing the cover and song titles on Taste of Death, but I can bet that whatever you did expect this album probably—shockingly—will exceed your expectations. It’s not going to make any end-of-year lists and this won’t be your new favorite band, but over this almost-40-minutes, Generichrist will certainly entertain you.
-Manny-O-War
Nine Circles 