Toxic Holocaust – Conjure And Command

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Conjure And Command represents the first full band effort for Toxic Holocaust, having existed as the one-man project of Joel Grind for the first few albums. What makes Toxic Holocaust stand out amongst the current wave of thrash metal revivalists is how they’ve not simply retread the old footsteps of the original ’80s thrash bands. Instead they’ve developed a more blackened thrash sound, much in the same vein as the likes of Deströyer 666. As a result, whilst Toxic Holocaust continue to be notably thrash-like on Conjure And Command, their sound could just as easily be compared to Watain as they could Sodom. It certainly helps that Joel Grind has a particularly gravelly vocal delivery that owes more to black metal than it does thrash. This makes for a great sound, and just like other bands in this particular sub-genre of thrash, Toxic Holocaust have the feel of a true, gritty heavy metal band about them. As a whole, Conjure And Command is an excellent sounding album with plenty of great chugging riffs and intoxicating atmosphere. Despite its dark tone when compared to some other recent bands in the genre, it still feels like the kind of album that fits just right with a long night of drinking and headbanging. Frankly that’s all that a thrash metal album really needs to be, and whilst perhaps this particular album could stand to be better, it is still a very good example of modern day thrash.

Written by James Donovan
More: 2011, Albums, Quick.Play Reviews, Thrash Metal, Toxic Holocaust