Някъде зад стените

Yeah, the Curtain was still pulled, albeit with a few potholes here and there, when the guys started their journey under the name Detonator in 1989. Their classic thrashy bombs from those days must have made waves around the Bulgarian underground although the fact that they hail from the countryside must have been some kind of an impediment for them to find the requisite support for their endeavours initially.

Well, an Absolute moniker can only bring about positive results, and the album reviewed here is an assured slab of intense old school thrash which is built around vigorous fast-paced headbangers ("Niakade Zad Stenite", "Alkoholna Sila") with mid-paced stompers ("Cherni Mutzuni") and more lyrical semi-balladic deviations (the excellent lead-driven instrumental "Mig Predi Golemia Vzriv") popping up here and there. Bigger musical prowess is displayed on the more complex "Stranata Na Straha" and the aptly-titled "Tehnicheski Progres" the latter not far from qualifying for Metallica’s “Master of Puppets” even with the contrived rhythm-section and the proficient lead pirouettes. Mentioning the Americans, there’s another composition that reminds of their early repertoire, the fine "V Kulta", another instrumental proposition with bold echoes of “The Call of Chtullu” (the title could have been a reference to that track as well), a capably stitched conglomerate of peaceful balladic and hard thrashing passages.

The vocalist doesn’t really try hard to be on par with the good music with his not very melodic hoarse semi-shouty baritone, but at least he’s not a detriment, and not only because he’s completely missing from a couple of cuts (the instrumentals). In a way akin to other Bulgarian purveyors (Ira Deum, Agresor, Nightmare, Crash, etc.) from around the same time, the band were moshing totally oblivious to the trends on the scene, creating their retro metal vistas with fierce determination and the absolute certainty that the days when this style would come back in vogue with full force were not that far ahead.

Well, said determination must have softened with time as by the time of the sophomore’s release some five years later the delivery had moved towards tepid bland hard’n heavy formulas, boring uninspired stuff that must have sunk a lot of Bulgarian fans’ hopes at the end of the decade. Not a dignified sequel to the opus here at all, and one that wouldn’t compel the audience to start searching for the other two instalments after it the last of which released a mere year ago. Absolutism on the field at present is not such a common occurrence so who knows, maybe this bunch have braced themselves for another less compromising lecture on it.