Ah, Quebec! Home of Mononc’ Serge, black metal, Poutine, black metal, and a little band we all know and had better respect, VOIVOD. Oh, and GORGUTS. Oh, and…now SKUMSTRIKE!
Beginning with the soft, soothing intro track as all albums should, ‘Caustic Poison’ comforts and gives peace and if you believe that, stop reading, this fuck is not for you! Surprisingly battle-hardened despite having only a demo and 3 EPs under its bullet belt, the duo of ZS and LA [drums, vocals and string bedevilment respectively] go straight for the balls on ‘Blood Red Vision’, a slaughter-stomp if ever there was one so far this year. Groovy as the flesh it’s flaying, one gets the feeling that SKUMSTRIKE doesn’t know what’s coming next in the song any more than you do. Instead of coming off unprepared, though, it’s more the channeling of pure vomit hate here, spewing through and into your ears.
‘Another Shot Of Fear’ is low-slung frantic hardcore-infused thrash, and if you don’t think such a thing exists well here’s a “fuck off”. It’s here and in ‘Mental Wound Submission’ most of all that we realize there are actually six members of SKUMSTRIKE if you count the four middle fingers present in the lineup, so determined are ZS and LA to divebomb your opinions with their attack.
Speaking of, ‘Deadly Intrusions’ is exactly that, forcing itself into your aural cavities as the closer arrives, ripping the lid off of POISON IDEA’s ‘Nothing Is Final’. Slow down? Never! Bow to none? Indeed. While I’d like to see/hear a bit more dynamics in the sound, I don’t think SKUMSTRIKE really cares what I’d like. And that’s part of why Deadly Intrusions matters.
Review By: Lord Randall
SKUMSTRIKE
Deadly Intrusions
Selfmadegod Records
3.5 / 6