Droid - Terrestrial Mutations (2017)

Take just about everything from Droid's Disconnected EP the year before, and then make it louder, better produced, more intricately designed and detailed, and you've got one of the best full-length Canadian thrash metal debuts in quite some time. Sure, there is still some semblance of standing in the shadow of those better-known countrymen performing in the same style, but this Ontario trio is wise to cultivate just a fraction of that Voivod influence and continue to shift it into something that becomes their own. The brighter, more powerful songwriting and mix of this album also highlights the contrast between the busy guitars and blunter, harsh vocals quite well, and both work better in unison than they did on the EP where it was a little rough.

It takes only the first moment of "Amorphous Forms (Shapeless Shadows)" to transport the listener off-world, with great melodic riffing, just the right level of effects, fluid bass lines and drumming that sounds a fuck ton better than the mix on the EP. Terrestrial Mutations is a phenomenal record because you simply don't know what's lying around each shift in its cosmic landscape; Jacob Montgomery's guitar playing is just that good, and he really brings to mind a lot of the more creative thrash axe-men of the later 80s and early 90s who populated records like Deathrow's Deception Ignored or Artillery's By Inheritance. Not so dauntingly brilliant as that stuff, perhaps, but constantly exciting, balancing out melody and aggression perfectly, and just alien and spacey enough to take me to that place on the cover art, and to many beyond. His vocals, while still a bit one-dimensional, have the right swell and mix of effects to feel like they are echoing angrily out through the empty hull of some drifting space-ship, and he's matched by a rhythm section of Michael Gabor and Sebastian Alcamo who are fantastic and both upped their game from the previous year's release.

This record just slays, from the Megadeth-meets-Voivod hooks of "Suspended Animation" to the more melancholic and mood-shifting title track, nothing ever sounds quite the same twice, thought it all seems to occupy the same envelope of style. They can pull off a ten minute composition with a lot more adventure in it as they can a shorter, more direct thrash piece, and when listening to this I feel like they could take on such an even wider scope, the stars are the limit!? In fact the one downside to listening through Terrestrial Mutations again is that I'm sad they haven't put out another offering in the 4-5 years since this one dropped. I know some of them are also involved in the retro metal/hard rock group Freeways (also a good band), but I can cross my fingers that they'll be called back out to the greater cosmos soon enough. Killer disc, familiar but fresh, and if you're looking for more stuff like Voivod's masterful 1987-1991 period or DBC's Universe then I'd advise you to give this one a go!

Verdict: Epic Win [9/10]

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Droid - Disconnected EP (2015)

Canada. Sci-fi. Thrash metal. The first thing that comes to mind is obviously Autothrall's favorite band in the world, Voivod, but the idea of hearing other bands from that same neighborhood perform their own spin on the concept is thrilling by osmosis. DBC's excellent Universe was a great example, and certainly we've heard that on the more technical death/thrash end of the scale with groups like Martyr and Obliveon, but the more recent Droid takes on a slightly less intense approach on their Disconnected EP which feels more like a fusion of classic thrash, heavy and speed metal with perhaps a handful of crossover strands in its DNA, and a healthy degree of involved or slightly technical riffing for an added level of depth.

While I'm not going to say that there isn't a little 80s Voivod influence in there, I think Droid does a pretty good job of establishing themselves as their 'own thing'. There are a lot of dissonant guitar chords that might recall Piggy, especially in "Cosmic Debt" which is their most punkiest, quirkiest, and the most similar to that influence; but also they use some other, warmer tones, and the agile licks that occupy tunes like "Breach Oblivion" certainly feel like they have more in common with other thrash scenes like the Teutonic school. The lead-work here is pretty outstanding, and they'll often throw up some nice atmospheric melodies that ring out over the busier rhythmic substrate. The bass-work is solid, grooving along not unlike a Blacky but nicely mixed in to support those crispier rhythm guitar tones. The vocals are a pretty straight crossover/thrash bark, not terribly interesting but certainly fit to the dystopian nature of the lyrics and concepts.

My one other small gripe is in the production, it's clear but fairly mundane and doesn't always emphasize some of the power of the guitars, but this is something they will improve upon their full-length, and to be honest, at worst this one just sounds like a great demo recording. It's authentic and sometimes dirty sounding, but never too splattery like a lot of Venom-worshipping black/thrash acts (which, to be fair, I do really love). I enjoy inventive, interesting thrash and speed metal, and while Droid don't reinvent any wheels on this, they're clearly distancing themselves from a lot of the more generic pizza party re-thrash outfits and coming up with good guitar licks that balance off mystery and melody, and Disconnected was a solid launching pad for something great.

Verdict: Win [7.5/10]

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