NUCLEAR ASSAULT „Third World Genocide”

Music: Thrash
Country: USA
Website: http://www.nuclearassault.us
Duration: 40.33
Cool Songs: Defiled Innocence, Human Wreckage, Price of Freedom, Exoskeletal

Without any doubt whatsoever, the most questionable ‘reunion’ release of 2005 is Nuclear Assault’s ‘Third World Genocide’. The reviews for this new album (their first studio effort since the debacle that was 1993’s ‘Something Wicked’), is easily 10% in the affirmative, 90% against. It’s significant that the majority of the negative reviews are coming from old school thrash heads like me. The old guard just isn’t impressed at all.

For most, ‘Third World Genocide’ is akin to pissing on your grandmother’s grave. It has tarnished a legacy. Well, of course, it’s all subjective isn’t it? It depends on what you thought of Nuclear Assault the first time around. Certainly the new scribes must be wondering what the hell we were smoking in 1985 when we tell them that ‘Game Over’ and ‘Survive’ were lauded as thrash classics. For some strange reason, I never actually embraced the N.A thrash take – not immediately anyway – their sloppy, low value production qualities and their overtly NY punk/hardcore crossover style didn’t exactly thrill me. At the time, I was way more enthused with the technicality of ‘Peace Sells..But Who’s Buying!

So, not having held N.A up as any sort of legendary thrash act (although I do recognise their place in the scene), the results of ‘Third World Genocide’ doesn’t actually surprise me. Nor am I mightily disappointed like many others. But again, it’s all about your expectations. Similar views have been aired about the recent Obituary release ‘Frozen in Time’ – I’m a massive Obituary fan, but I wasn’t deluded enough (like many others, it seems) to believe that Tardy & co were going release anything BUT a typical Obituary album. Yeah, it’s not their best work (didn’t really expect that either), but for me it does the job. The same can be said for ‘Third World Genocide’. Just what the hell were you expecting? If you thought 2005 production values, pro tools studio trickery and a total ‘reinvention’ of the thrash genre, then you’ve had the bar positioned way too high in the first place. It was never, ever going to be that way.

‘Third World Genocide’ isn’t as bad as some folk have dressed it up to be. As the band stated from the first day they reunited and released 2003’s ‘Alive Again’ live album, their next studio album was going to be nothing but 80s’ driven thrash; Nuclear Assault style. Sure, there is nothing on here that stirs any sort of ‘classic-era’ emotion (perhaps the real reason to question their reunion motives), ‘Third World..’ is certainly much more authentic sounding than the aforementioned ‘Wicked World’ and 1991’s ‘Out of Order’. In this sense, the raw sloppy production, the goofy ‘tongue in cheek’ moments, the searing lead work and THAT unmistakable (and admittedly ‘acquired’) voice of John Connelly makes ‘Third World Genocide’ sit fairly comfortably (but dwarfed by their shadows) along side ‘Game Over, The Plague and Survive’. Ironically, for me at least, ‘Third World..’ is much more regressive than what I consider to be their best work – ‘1990’s ‘Handle With Care’. This was where N.A became a razor sharp thrash act that finally nailed their sound with a complimentary production. Alas it didn’t last. Nor does this new one touch any of its bases.

‘Third World Genocide’ is a typical 80’s styled, early period infused Nuclear Assault release. Not a patch on their first three/four releases in terms of song writing flair and consistency, but stylistically it ‘fits’ nicely among them. In a time of over produced, over processed to the point of redundant personality metal albums, ‘Third World..’ is a massive throwback. If you worshipped the ground that N.A walked back in the day, yes, I agree that this new one is a tad disappointing, but really its about as good as we could have expected. It’s even graced with a couple of truly horrible tunes just like they always did in the early days. ‘Third World Genocide’ certainly won’t engender the cynical folk to the worth of continued recycled reformations, but lets face it folks, we can’t have Candlemass-like reunions every time.

note: 5.9/10

Tracklist

Third World Genocide
Price of Freedom
Human Wreckage
Living Hell
Whine and Cheese
Defiled Innocence
Exoskeletal
Discharged Reason
Fractured Minds
The Hockey Song
Eroded Liberty
Long Haired Asshole
Glenn's Song

Line-up

Danny Lilker (Bass/Vocals)
Glenn Evans (Drums)
John Connelly (Guitar/Vocals)
Erik Burke (Guitar)