Full Album Stream: Toxic Holocaust: Chemistry Of Consciousness – new album

You know what they say: each and every record is the band's best yet (and it may as well be in the eyes/ears of the beholder), but this TOXIC HOLOCAUST record, ‘Chemistry Of Consciousness’, truly is their best. Issued on October the 29th, 2013 through TOXIC HOLOCAUST faithful partner in crime, Relapse Records, the eleven high energy punk-metal tunes were recorded by the band themselves and mixed by CONVERGE's Kurt Ballou and mastered by Brad Boatright. “The most outstanding record in TOXIC HOLOCAUST's already near perfect discography”, ‘Chemistry Of Consciousness’ was given away by their label thusly:

“ ‘Chemistry Of Consciousness’ is the sound of DISCHARGE on speed, SLAYER with a punk rock chip on its shoulder, THE EXPLOITED on a METALLICA overdose - the perfect marriage of punk angst and metal guitar licks and hooks. If there’s one thing the punks and the heshers will agree on in 2013, its that TOXIC HOLOCAUST's ‘Chemistry Of Consciousness’ is a rager of a record destined to top any worthwhile best of 2013 list.”

What’s left is to enjoy the album below, and then to order it from Relapse Records here, to buy it on iTunes, from Amazon/Amazon MP3 or from BandCamp:

Joel Grind's punk-inflected death metal band from Portland, Oregon, TOXIC HOLOCAUST, came to be in 1999. Inspired by the likes of BATHORY, VENOM, ENGLISH DOGS, POSSESSED etc, the one-man-band Grind wrote and recorded several demos, mixing classic punk and metal with hard rock and throwing in some blazing riffs and gravel-throated vocals, before TOXIC HOLOCAUST's self-recorded debut full-length, ‘Evil Never Dies’, was released in 2003. AllMusic's Greg Prato commented: “For thrash so vintage-sounding that it could be passed off as an unreleased album teleported directly from the mid '80s, ‘Evil Never Dies’ is one potent metallic weapon:”

Grind's second album, ‘Hell On Earth’, again recorded in his spare bedroom, was released in 2005, featuring cover art by classic metal artist Ed Repka and a guitar solo from Bobby Steele (ex-MISFITS) on the title track. TOXIC HOLOCAUST had toured the U.S., Japan, Australia, Europe, Canada, and Brazil throughout the year that followed, a DIY affair since all tours were self-booked and self-financed:

 

Finally, Relapse Records took notice of Grind's determination and talent and signed the band in 2008. Teaming up with legendary producer Jack Endino, ‘An Overdose Of Death’ became TOXIC HOLOCAUST's first album to be recorded in a proper studio with Paul “Personality” Barke on guitar and Donny Paycheck on drums:

“Custom-made for the cut-off denim jacket/white high top/mullet-wearing set, loaded with speedy riffs, shouted/growled vocals, and lyrically, all the prerequisite topics for '80s thrash are touched upon (Armageddon, nuclear holocaust, death, etc.). As with all great thrash bands, just pick the most “colorful” song titles, and be prepared to get throttled - ‘Nuke The Cross’, ‘In The Name Of Science’, and ‘Feedback, Blood, And Distortion’ are all rapid-fire screecher-keepers,” [discovered Greg Prato, AllMusic – more here:]

A proper band now, TOXIC HOLOCAUST returned in 2011 with Joel Grind (vocals and guitar), Phil Zeller on bass and Nick Bellmore on drums. Upon the occasion of the release of his fourth full-length effort, ‘Conjure And Command’, Mr. Rivadavia, AllMusic congratulated Mr. Grind on “mixing and matching the old [musical molds] more creatively than most other practitioners of the form”, and expressed hope TOXIC HOLOCAUST's name will stay “safe from limiting subgenre associations”:

“TOXIC HOLOCAUST always had a few more speeds in their gearbox and musical tricks in their arsenal to begin with. Chief among those, perhaps, were Grind's crust-punk and blackened thrash influences, which are pushed to the fore here like never before, also probably in an effort to help divorce TOXIC HOLOCAUST from any of that lingering new millennium thrash stench. Whatever the goal, the ploy certainly works:” [he concluded – more here]

TOXIC HOLOCAUST features: Joel Grind – vocals and guitar, Phil Zeller – bass and vocals and Nick Bellmore – drums