Thursday, March 3, 2011

Nekrofilth - Worship Destruction (2011)

Nekrofilth is one of those anomalous side projects of side projects that eventually carry so much charisma that they become an entity unto themselves. In this case, it's another project of Cleveland's Zack Rose, who blasphemes by day in Nunslaughter and moonlights in the thrash act Crucified Mortals, whose s/t debut full-length I also just reviewed. Worship Destruction is actually culled from a 2008 demo, having been upgraded to a vinyl format through Hell's Headbangers, who revel in this sort of diabolic smut, and it's nothing more than 15 minutes of incredibly crude punk, thrash and disgust that feels like the illegitimate offspring of Acid Bath, Hellhammer and D.R.I., if you can believe that.

There's really only so much you can cram into 10 songs in this amount of time, but I was shocked that some of the individual tracks are rather riffy, in particular the title "Worship Destruction" and the dour, sewage-strewn "Anguish". That doesn't mean that the riffs are any good, they're naught but basic punk/thrash chord sequences that are never complex or intricate. I'm sure Rose could write about 20-30 of these songs in an afternoon, but there's a rugged simplicity to them which functions despite itself. They'd probably be fun live, if only because they sound pissed off and you could bang your head to them while unafraid to slosh your beer all over yourself or your friends. The vocals are angry and crossover style, though not so vicious as old Corrosion of Conformity or The Accüsed, so they're more of a straight, knife edged barking. Once in a while Rose will actually tear out a little, sporadic lead ("I Feel Nothing"), but they don't necessarily enhance the tracks.

Perhaps the best thing here is "Get Fucked", which is only 55 seconds of filthy swagger carved out in a pair of riffs that are over before you can even shout the chorus, but "Jerusalem Decay" also has a thick sludge/thrash element to it which could have spiked punks frothing up a circle pit of stinking bravado. Also, any band who commits a song called "Throne of Sluts" to vinyl gets a free pass in my opinion, and it's nigh impossible not to laugh your knees off at the lyrics. Worship Destruction is not going to cull a rabid following outside of the usual vinyl collecting circles, but I have to say it has a bit more to it than I was expecting. It's not a highbrow work of art, and that was never the intention. Just a few friends, taking the piss, punching your guts, having a blast in the time it would take you to enjoy a smoke break, or a standard porn scene. Fun, undeniably filthy, and soon forgotten.

Verdict: Indifference [5.75/10]


http://www.myspace.com/nekrofilth

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