Bestial Manifestations of Malevolence and Death

When it comes to many bands playing the hybrid of death metal and thrash metal, a few stand out as all-time classics. Vader out of Germany came through with catchy songwriting, Axeslasher is goofy and fun but all the while memorable; and of course who could forget Brazilian maniacs Sepultura? Many try to compete, and many fail. However, there are those that rise out of woodwork and craft some solid potential even if it seems monotonous and familiar. Ladies and gentlemen, I present Seattle Kaiju enthusiasts: Oxygen Destroyer.

Oxygen Destroyer is one of those death/thrash bands that takes influence from black metal as well. Think Destroyer 666, but not as unique and just as enjoyable. I realize it may seem confusing to anyone reading if you should listen to this or not and my answer is a simple yes and a simple no. Many of the tracks featured here as extremely fun to listen to. Blasting thrash riffs that call back to legends in the genre like Exodus on top of pummeling drums that, at times, break up the monotony by adding in fills and other quirks throughout the songs, and typical black metal shrieks.

My only issue after listening to this so many times is that, while there is potential, I can't help but feel I've heard this all before. The riffs go back and forth from thrashing madness to pummeling tremolo riffs and it's all and good fun, but there seems to be a lack of pushing the limits and experimentation. Sure, not everyone wants to hear weird shit in a straight forward genre like this, but there needs to be some sort of mold to make your band stand out or else you get lost in a sea of endless bands that sound exactly alike. These guys may have the Kaiju theme going for them, and it works really well with the instrumentation, but it won't be enough to break up the madness later on in the future.

I hope this band continues to try something new, because the songwriting is definitely there. It just seems to me that they don't necessarily stand out and it doesn't help that the whole thing flies by within the thirty minute run time this album has. I mean good lord, some of these songs don't even go past the two minute mark. I can only hope that all the potential doesn't back fire on these guys, because despite the fun and enjoyability, they'll likely become forgotten within the next 5 years.