I’ll be honest I have not really kept up with “The Waste” over the years. I have most of the albums they have released on MP3 left unlistened to (tape trader style innit – I’m an old thrasher) and that is something I was completely comfortable with. When Hazardous Mutation came out way back when, I was excited for a bit. Then I remembered I owned Nuclear Assault albums and had seen them live on the Handle With Care tour and did the grumpy git thing and went back to those classics. Tony Foresta’s voice has enough of the John Connelly about it and the riffs are just as fast and gnarly but I love that Danny Lilker rumble in the originals. Over the years I have kept up to date with the various side projects of the genius Dave Witte – big props to Brain Tentacles and Publicist UK and I have really enjoyed Iron Reagan that features Foresta and Land Phil.
I suppose I have been one of those to dismiss Municipal Waste as party or Pizza thrash and haughtily put my nose in the air and gone to look for more supposedly cerebral fare. Well, here I am at nearly 50 dipping my hi tops back in the water of the Terror Sharks (my fave track on the debut), and Municipal Waste have been frozen like Encino Man. It is still 2005 via 1987 for these guys. Tight riffs, great thrash drumming, key changes and solos in all the right places and songs about being in Boat Jail, Beer, and ghostly oddjob men. It’s thrash in day glo shorts for kids to surf Lilo over crowds in festival moshpits. Who am I to deny them that?
It’s dumb clean fun. I don’t mean that as detrimentally as it sounds. The music is well played and wonderfully produced and every one of the 14 tracks passes the thrashers test – it will definitely get the mullets, that all the trendy young things seem to be sporting now, flicking about and plenty of Hi Tec and Reebok soles facing skywards. fans of Municipal Waste will take to this like Frat boys to a free pizza at a kegger. This is the American Pie of thrash metal. It’s cliched but it has its place front and centre in the world of modern thrash. I prefer what Dead Heat are doing as I like a lil bit more crossover in my nostalgia.
This is the most Ronseal album that will come out this year. The review is moot – if you love em you will buy it. Sometimes even last week’s pizza can taste good with the right dip.
(6.5/10 Matt Mason)
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