01. Panic Attack
02. Dismay
03. Messiah of Decay
04. Away from Reality (inst.)
05. The Wave of Death
06. Playground of Visions
07. Revelation of Truth (Acoustics)
08. Cruel World (Society to Adapt)
09. Unbearable Conditions
10. Dismay (bonus)
Comment:
1st album by this band from Slovenia that plays an intense Thrash Metal in the Bay Area style influenced by bands like VIO-LENCE, DEMOLITION HAMMER, FORCED ENTRY, EXODUS, FORBIDDEN...
So far, the already saturated retro Thrash market has been beaten over and over again like a dead horse. And for real fans of the style, today it's harder than ever to find a band that plays honest music with the required attitude, so to speak. I was really surprised by "Unbearable Conditions", the debut album from Slovenian outfit PANIKK. I can't deny that the first thing that crossed my mind upon that first listen was "Damn, they sound like an angry version of early FORBIDDEN". And after 3 or 4 spins, I got stuck on that thought. Vocalist / guitarist Gašper Flere sounds similar to a young Russ Anderson. But, and here's the big but, these guys have a lot more influences than the aforementioned band. There's traces of DEATH ANGEL, ATROPHY, MORDRED and a bunch of other Bay Area bands with hints of ARTILLERY and ASSASSIN. So there's a little European feel to it too. And by no means PANIKK is a copycat at all. I've waited years for an album like this one to come out. Actually, since 1999 I haven't had such a great listen from start to finish. These guys know what they are doing and they do it with such conviction and honesty that I immediately set them apart from all the other bands. And I may include some old classic bands that came back in the last few years. "Unbearable Conditions" has it all. The overall punchy yet heavy production that sent me back straight to 1989, the rawness, the attitude, the "in your face" leads and tons and tons of tasty riffs. Maybe the only downside is variation. Half way through the album the songs tend to sound similar due to the non stop Speed Metal attack. Even though there are enough heavy headbanging parts included. Bonus points for the excellent instrumental song 'Away From Reality'. As excellent instrumentalists, all the performances are top notch. I can't deny that this album has been on constant rotation for the last week. Thank you PANIKK guys for a job well done. Amazing album! Do I still need to recommend you this album or to support the band? Well, go ahead and do it (this re-release even comes with an additional bonus track, the first ever recorded version of the track 'Dismay' - Frank)! These guys deserve it!
Slovenia’s Panikk finally unleashes their debut full length album after 5 years. Unbearable Conditions presents with fans of thrash metal with some good, old school thrash metal and with the energetic material that is contained in the 40-minute record, this album is one that is bound to evoke some feelings of nostalgia for the old school fan.
The band’s devotion to the old school is immediately obvious, and the band’s aural assault is relentless as soon as Panic Attack begins, true to the title of the track. The riffing style of guitarists Gasper and Nejc immediately brings one back to the 80s where records like Bonded By Blood and Fabulous Disaster reigned as some of thrash metal’s finest releases. Furthermore, the high energy that the band displays throughout the record is also reminiscent of such bands as Demolition Hammer and Municipal Waste, and resemblance of the latter is extremely obvious with the at times crossover style that Panikk tends to go into, with the raw, punkish energy that is bursting out of the band. The similarity is made all the more evident with the vocal style of Gasper, and the gang shouts at the background that are pretty heavily utilised on Unbearable Conditions.
Yet this is more than just a pure old school thrash metal worship album as the band includes quite a range of other elements. Two tracks in particular stand out from the rest of the album, with the first being the instrumental track Away from Reality, which brings to mind contemporaries such as Diamond Plate with the fusing of the modern and the old school. Revelation of Truth is an acoustic track and displays the more emotional and somewhat melancholic side of the band, and tracks like these ensure that Unbearable Conditions remain a surprising listen throughout.
The instrumentation on Unbearable Conditions is extremely brilliant as well, and guitarists Gasper and Nejc take turns on the lead guitars, alternating between chaotic solos a la Kerry King and those that are more melodic. Drummer Grega provides most of the energy on the record as well, along with the shouting vocals of Gasper. Bassist Rok also remains constantly audible on the album, providing a nice punchy tone to the strings section.
Albums such as Panikk‘s Unbearable Conditions remind me about the reasons that I got attracted to the genre, with the flair that the band displayed in producing their art. With the band managing to add in a tinge of modernity in their brand of old school thrash metal, Unbearable Conditions is certainly the first thrash metal record to catch my attention for the year.
Desde Eslovenia aparece un espectro sonoro que se materializa físicamente en el primer trabajo en formato extenso de estas jóvenes promesas thrasmetaleras. Dejan el pabellón muy alto, con un nivel técnico y compositivo abrumador, que aunque debido a sus claras influencias esta algo falto de espíritu, supera a la media de forma aplastante. “Unbearable Conditions” es un revival de la vieja escuela al uso, que toman por norma las reglas básicas dictadas en la tantas veces recurrida escena del Bay Area.
Un billete de ida que te embarca en un viaje en el tiempo directo a finales de la década dorada del Thrash Metal mas aventajado, rápido, enfermizo, pegadizo y técnico. “Unbearable Conditions” es un disco que a pesar de las circunstancias y el descaro con que lo presentan, impresiona, sin ninguna duda es un disco de Thrash impresionante, lleno de matices y trasfondos clásicos y añejos, casi tanto como los pantalones elásticos y las “Converse All Star”.
Este es un disco que cuenta con un equilibrio perfecto en cuanto a riffs interesantes y creíbles, sin abusar del refrito de riffs al que muchos grupos de las nuevas hordas Thrash nos tiene tan acostumbrados, y dando gracias que esta vez dejan tranquilos a los viejos METALLICA, por una vez, hombre sus influencias tiene que duda cabe, pero se adentran en otros terrenos igualmente interesantes y apetecibles o más, dejando a la vista y desenterrando de la memoria a bandas clásicas como EXODUS, FORBIDDEN, VIO-LENCE, etc, van en esa linea, aunque también e inevitablemente de vez en cuando aparecen matices teutones. Una combinación letal de riffs implacables a la vez que pegadizos.
Su propuesta musical es clara y directa, cuenta con una base rítmica solida y muy contundente bien acompañada en todo momento por sus correspondientes y habilidosos solos de guitarra, rozando niveles estratosféricos y muy correctos. Un vocalista con una voz muy afín al contexto donde se le deja libertad de acción y expresión, terreno donde se desenvuelve con maestría, estos chicos reúnen todos los requisitos necesarios para poder destacar o al menos brillar con algo de luz propia a pesar de los pesares. Thrash serio, toneladas de riffs y cambios de tiempo en abundancia, aplastante y desenfrenado, vicioso y siniestro, Thrash Metal capaz de levantar ampollas, un disco con una atmósfera malévola y adictiva.
Personalmente me quedo con temas como “Messiah of Decay”, “The Wave of Death”, “Cruel World (Society to Adapt)” o la que cierra filas “Unbearable Conditions”, que dejan fluir la esencia pura del espíritu Thrash Metal por excelencia, sin tapujos, sin aditivos, sin tonterías Groove o Stoner, tan de moda en los chavales de hoy día, Thrash puro y duro que te pateará el culo, desencajará tus cervicales y de hará babear de gusto.
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