Oxygen Destroyer

Sinister Monstrosities Spawned by the Unfathomable Ignorance of Humankind

Written by: RUB on 03/09/2021 23:07:39

Confession time! I’ve never seen the original Godzilla movies, and I can’t say they’re on my must-watch list. Perhaps this will have to change after spinning this monstrosity of an album, because those 30 minutes managed to pique my interest so badly, solely because of how extreme it is – and I do like my metal to be extreme. Oxygen Destroyer, however, seems to love their kaiju films, as Oxygen Destroyer is what the weapon used to kill Godzilla in the original movie was called – how about that? But perhaps more importantly, not only do these guys write some absolutely impressive music, but their general love for that certain underground sound is also something worthy of praise nowadays because there seem to be few and far in-between newer bands that still dig that sort of iconic sound, which fits quite well together with their admiration for those old movies. No need to keep you guys waiting longer than necessary, let’s get to it.

With snarls reminding me of a certain Proscriptor McGovern of Absu, the edge of extremity is already taken to an impressive level with the first track. “Merciless Embodiment of Everlasting Death” gets straight to the point with a spanning time shorter than three minutes. They waste little time and only a 30-seconds intro is put to clear and precise use before the BPM is seriously picked up: this is as grim and menacing as it gets. The quartet sticks to their guns when it comes to the silver lining of the story at hand, and the central keyword that comes to mind is fierce. Not only that, but the riffs are enthralling and contain enough variation to even make them stand out from track to track. Already on track two, “Possessing the Putrified Remnants of the Unholy God Incarnate” (man, I just love titles like this), the band even showcases incredible usage of a powerful and well-placed breakdown, just to make the more extreme parts stand out even more vividly. And they are extreme. The sound which both guitars and drums have could be labeled as true underground in today’s world. No unnecessary production or twerk has been used, but only just enough to make every instrument sound as clear and crisp as possible. This is necessary because when music is as fast-paced and thrashed as this, the slightest miss in production would make this a muddy and not very pleasant listening experience. Luckily, this is not an issue for Oxygen Destroyer.

What would then make this more extreme? Of course, you add what sounds like bits and pieces from the old movies, to incorporate the very sound of Godzilla into your songs, as done before the onslaught of track three, “Slaughtering the Guardian Monsters”, erupts. This is done again at track five, “Enduring the Maternal Rage of the Amphibious Monstrosity” and track seven “As Big as a Battleship”, where I’m certain the clips must be from those movies. The former song reveals another source of inspiration, although maybe not intentional. I hear a lot of Vader in this, although the actual sound these two bands have is not the same. The fast-paced thrashy extreme metal, however, definitely is, and the way they switch back and forth between the different sections of the songs, rhythms, and riffs are as well.

This is an exhausting listen – but in a good way – because you need to pay close attention because there’s so much going on. The devils in the detail as the saying goes, and it is definitely a trying task to keep extreme metal extreme, but still versatile and with enough variation to make the songs stick out. Usually, this is done with different riffs (obviously), rhythms, solos (in this case much more accomplished than I’m used to lately), and so on, but for Oxygen Destroyer it seems to be the combination of it all because the interplay between every instrument must be stemming from hours upon hours of practice, and, of course, just really well-written track in general.

Take for example the second-longest track title on the album, track five, “Enduring the Maternal Rage of the Amphibious Monstrosity”, I’m simply amazed at how well this track is structured. So many different variations and elements packed into a 3½ minutes long track, and it’s simply put just so extreme, and rivals “Possessing the Putrified…” for the best track on the album. All of this is without any unnecessary use of symphonics and various changes in vocal style, it’s just the instruments and the same terrifyingly shrieked vocals, but it just works so well. This is also why I have a hard time singling out every good track because since this album barely lasts for 30 minutes, it should be no difficult task listening to it all in one go, which is my recommendation. Need another one? Just look at that pure-badass album cover!

What may or may not have been branded as silly before listening to it, is utterly brought to shame as soon as you’re no more than a single track into the album. This is grim, not for the faint-hearted and completely barred from anything even remotely associated with filler and mainstream. What was first regarded as an “Ok, I have to review this album because of that silly name” eventually turned into “Ok, this is actually really, really good!. It is times like this that I really like reviewing albums because surprises like this don’t happen too often, although 2021 has proved to be filled with them. If you like extreme metal, and perhaps, in particular, some which must be branded as fairly associated with the loose term underground, I can highly recommend Oxygen Destroyer – even if you, like myself, aren’t familiar with the universe of kaiju films.

Download: Possessing the Putrified Remnants of the Unholy God Incarnate; Enduring the Maternal Rage of the Amphibious Monstrosity; Their Reign Has Begun; Sons of the Necrobeast
For the fans of: Hypnosia, Vader, Kreator, Absu, Venom
Listen: Facebook

Release date 27.08.2021
Redefining Darkness Records

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