Toxik - Breaking Clas$ EP (2017)

Toxik was another of those 80s thrash hopefuls that I'm pretty sure most of us old heads never thought we'd hear from again, so when they had a proper reformation in the 2010s I was quite elated to hear more of that hybrid of thrash, speed and power metal that they initiated with their shrieking debut World Circus, and then refined in the more memorable, progressive Think This. The Breaking Class$ EP more or less gets them back on the horse, and frankly sounds like a natural continuation on their sophomore sound, if leaning a bit more towards the clinical, scalpel-riffing thrash (which they'd delve even further into later). The material reunites reunites axe-lord Josh Christian with Charles Sabin's vocals, and a new rhythm section in Shane Boulos and James deMaria that moves in lockstep to the janky rhythmic explorations found herein.

Yes, this was the most technical wizardry and arguable 'experimentation' you'd have heard from Toxik yet, building upon the potential of the second full-length, nudging just past it, but not necessarily in a flashy way. A lot of the strong moments here on these three tracks are slower to mid-paced grooves in which Josh splays out all these surgical, melodic riffing patterns that give this one a real eerie, cautionary vibe about it. Lots of double bass driving the rhythms to help modernize them from the 80s material, but as they swerve into the chorus hooks, it will definitely come across as material that could have fit right in with Think This. Intelligent thrash metal which delivers the listener of this niche an adventure that they simply hadn't been on through the leagues of pizza-thrash nostalgia, Bay Area or Teutonic cloning that so many of the re-thrash bands pursued. All the players are on point here, whether they're speeding along at a rapid clip or breaking into grooves or even a few riffs that sound tongue-in-cheek, like in the blazing title track.

Sabin might not be quite so effortlessly shrill here as he was decades before, but he still sounds rather good and I've always enjoyed the shifts between his mid-ranged raving and the creepier high pitch that he alternates in to give this that more psychotic, thrilling feel. The guitars are obviously top notch as this man is just one of our East Coast scene's unsung heroes in the field, making it all sound easy but still prioritizing riffs or leads that will catch your ear rather than jerk himself off. As a sampler EP of a potential future Toxik, this was quite encouraging to hear after so many years, and though I know this wasn't technically their first material since getting back on the train (the In Humanity demo came out before, but I hadn't really listened through it), they really feel as if no time has passed at all, other than maybe the drumming. The songs here aren't quite Think This-level quality, but certainly solid.

Verdict: Win [7.5/10]

https://toxikmetal.net/