Indestroy - Senseless Theories EP (1989)

Indestroy's self-titled 1987 debut album is just one of those charming little numbers that claws away at your memory until you concede defeat and offer it the reverence of the ages, placing it upon your 2nd tier thrash pedestal, below the greats, but loftily elevated above and beyond so much of the genre that would follow in the ensuing decades. One of the true highlights of the entire New Renaissance roster, Indestroy was a crude and admittedly low budget recording, but that hasn't stopped it from acquiring a cult immortality status within my record collection. The production only made it that much more endearing...

However, that album would not be the last for the Maryland ragers, who issued the Senseless Theories EP through Restless Records a few years later. The sound here is a little sharper, lacking some of the muddied and laconic feel of the guitar tone on the full-length, but it's also clearer, and the band has not changed its approach to writing simple, effective thrash with fairly catchy chops and the atmosphere conjured by Mark Strassburg's filthy, almost crossover vocal style. One exception might be the slightly more technical embellishments to the guitar riffs. A good example of this would be the Destruction-like passage in the latter half of "Tortured by Fire", or the chorus of "Instant Insanity", but this is more of an exception than the rule.

With a few more tracks tossed on the end, this could have been a full-length itself, and a good one, if not the equal of its predecessor. Most of the songs here summon forth at least a few good riffs, and in some cases, superb riffs. The evil, wiry grooves of "Living in Filth" and the hostile Slayer/Possessed surge of title track "Senseless Theories" both come to mind, but these are not alone. "Instant Insanity" is a frenetic, pacemaker-busting piece with solos flying off the hook and some eerie weight to the chords and effects beyond the 2:00 mark. "Terminal Choice" and "Sam the Butcher" are worthy enough to be in this company, but not the more memorable tracks found here.

There's nothing senseless about this material, though it doesn't quite live up to the more primal and entertaining debut. I wasn't about to run around howling these songs out loud as I once did with "U.S.S.A" or "Dead Girls (Don't Say No)". However, this is far, far better than the band drummer Gus Basilika and vocalist/guitarist Mark Strassburg would later form, the doom oriented Wretched, whose name was all too fitting, though they managed to score a deal with Hellhound regardless. Senseless Theories won't blow your mind, but it's at least quality thrash from a state that produced very few such bands, being known more for its death and doom scenes.

Verdict: Win [7/10]

http://www.myspace.com/indestroy

Indestroy - Indestroy (1987)

Very much overlooked, the debut from this grimy Maryland thrash band has always made me wax nostalgic, as it captured a gritty and raw vibe that few bands could really attest to in the late 80s. Everything from the excellent cover art to the horribly awesome lyrics remains fresh to me even now, when so many bands are trying (and failing) to recapture that fatal energy of this genre's youth.

Every riff on this album is excellent, with a sludgy tone which equates to thrash metal sewage. But not the kind of sewage you fear and poke a stick at, the kind you want to splash around in as it carries you out the river of toxic waste to sea and oblivion. "The Gate" has a dark occult concept which reminds one of the cheesy old movie of the same name, complete with burning solos, and Mark Strausberg's Possessed-like vocals (he actually was a member of Possessed at one point). The song also breaks into this creepy doom riff near the end, which rules. "U.S.S.A." is anchored by an amazing energetic riff, and the song is about our great nation losing its liberties in a sea of warfare and censorship. Sound familiar? I wonder why?

Do What They Say, Just A Slave, Cradle To Grave, U.S.S.A!

"Ground Zero" begins with another of the band's slower, creepy crawly thrash riffs, this song is your pure nuclear annihilation anthem. People were really obsessed with this back then. Next up is the necrophiliac magnum opus "Dead Girls (Don't Say No)" which is as hilarious as you think. "Fatal Sin" has a very cool intro riff, slow and gloomy, but busts out into some sick thrashing. "Brain Damaged" begins with a nice lead before picking up the pace, curiously this is one of those 'biographical' tracks which is singing about metal itself...when a band does this today I can't stand it, yet it was a little more novel back in the day. Plus, this one has some cool lyrics to it. "Justice Sucks" has some grooving bass and excellent guitar riffs, the lyrics are also pretty hilarious.

Justice Sucks, I Spit On Cops
They Lock Me Up, You're Busted - For What
Possession, Interrogation, Of A Dangerous Substance!

Too true, my brother. Too true, the song relates the tale of a man getting busted for smoking a bone. "Shadowlord" is a dark and evil track that will appeal to fans of Venom or Possessed. "A.I.M.L.E.S.S." begins with a cool mutation of grooving bass and guitar noise into a spooky doom part, then proceeds into one of their slower tracks, but still excellent. The album ends with the dirty "Dismembered".

Did I mention how much I loved this? The production is just excellent, very sludgy sounding distortion so the thin leads cut right through. The bass is thick and omnipresent, and the vocals are excellent, kind of a hybrid of Dave Mustaine and Jeff Becera. This is the perfect nostalgic thrash metal album, few have heard of it, few ever will, but to those that love it and live it, I salute you. The follow-up EP Senseless Theories is also quite good, but this full-length truly captures the urban thrasher spirit in a way that most of the silly modern 'retro-' bands never seem to match. Poseurs need not apply.

Verdict: Epic Win [9/10] (she was good and very sweet,
for a lifeless piece of ice cold meat)

http://www.myspace.com/indestroy (fan page)