Toxik - Dis Morta (2022)

 Finally, after 33 years, the third Toxik full-length had arrived, and yes, while I realize there had been enough material across the various works that comprised the III Works compilation, which I have separated out to review individually, this was a brand new joint entirely. When I first spun this Dis Morta, I wasn't sure what to think...I couldn't comprehend that the band could still sound this fresh and relevant. I thought it was quite an impressive line drawn in the sand, but I shelved it for months, probably just because I was flooded with so much else and my mind was not ready to process an album like this. Yes, Dis Morta is the screaming, blazing, technical maelstrom of controlled chaos you knew Toxik was capable of producing, and 44 minutes of it, no slim picking like the last crop of reunion releases.

The production here deserves mention, because while it had been impactful and clear on the recordings leading up to this, it has so much more dimension for what's going on. The album sounds vast, without losing any of the myriad of frenetic components in all that expanse of sound. Ron Iglesias totally steps it up here, while Kinetic Composure was his attempt to fit the shoes of his predecessors, here he BECOMES a sparkling brand new pair of that footwear in the same line. His mid-range here is just fucking awesome, and I love when he layers it together with Halford-like screams for something really wild. At the same time, his shrill, pure high delivery is the perfect complement to what Sabin and Sanders had screamed out in the past, and he solidifies himself as the perfect successor. The combo of James DeMaria and Shane Boulos hasn't had to evolved much from the EP/demo material, and they can handle whatever the freak Josh Christian throws their way, a bedrock for all the psychotic picking, melodies, and flurries of schizo leads that are flying all over the material. They've also added another rhythm guitar for some punch, and that might be why this just sounds like it has more layers to peel back than the EPs.

As a dial back to Think This, the tracks are often set up with topical social/political/religious samples, newscasts and such, and so you still get the impression you're in that screen-filled control chamber, witnessing the utter calamity of early 21st century civilization. This works best in "Hyper Reality", with the cool of the verses and choruses, wavering back and forth to actually place you best inside the subject, and choppy as fuck with the erupting technical thrash. After spending over a year with the album, I don't really think there are many weak points, even where the band hurls in a djentish rhythm ("Creating the Abyss") or a ethereal ballad intro ("Devil in the Mirror") it all ties in perfectly to the greater structure of the album, and let's the members play around with ideas that Toxik hasn't been able to delve too far into in its past. This is not necessarily the gold standard that Think This was in 1989, but it's a superb modernization and has confidently grown into my second favorite of their catalogue, even though all three of them are well worth possessing. The cover art's a little on-the-nose, but they all were, and its symmetry is a fit symbol for how tight this damn band is.

Verdict: Win [8.5/10]

https://toxikmetal.net/