Destroy Destroy Destroy - Devour The Power
Black Market Activities
Viking Metal / Melodic Death Metal
11 songs (39:46)
Release year: 2006
Destroy Destroy Destroy, Black Market Activities
Reviewed by Dylan
Surprise of the month
Destroy Destroy Destroy is one of those bands that just doesn’t seem to match the musical characteristics of their hometown. Haling from a small city outside the home of country music (Nashville, TN) this band has no Corrosion of Conformity style croons, no snaky Pantera-ish riffs, and (thankfully) no monstrously overrated odes to the south, a’ la Lynard Skynard. Destroy Destroy Destroy owes their energetic, heavy, and just plain fun sound to Scandinavia and the ale-drinking, battle thirsty, sword bearing metal bands found within. Best described as an aural combination between the speedy, catchy melodicism of old Children of Bodom, with the lyrical themes and upbeat swagger of many a power metal act. The end result is a debut that makes up for its lack in originality with an abundance of catchy melodic hooks and songs that are just plain entertaining to listen to.

One look at these song titles and you know that these guys know not to take themselves too seriously. Ripped Apart By The Juggernaut Of Fornication, Seduced By the Locrian Temptress, and Mutilated Cranial Orifice are all indicative of a band that knows there is always some welcome room for a little humor in the world of metal. For such a tongue-in-cheek presentation, these guys kick a serious amount of ass. Almost every song succeeds in delivering a powerful anthemic chorus; complete with gang vocals, pounding drums, and well-timed keyboard melodies that don’t fly aimlessly all over the place (DragonForce anyone?). The band’s instrumentation is not technical by any means, every instrument works together as one to serve the song, and each one does quite a good service at that. Hang The Vermin is a great example of this, with an intro that unfolds epically until the tremolo fury found in the verse, then leading to a breakdown that forces your head to bob if only a little. No flashy displays of time signature manipulation, 3 minute soloing, or anything else that distracts you from the melodious hooks and slaying grooves (such as the one towards the end of the aforementioned song). Ripped Apart By The Juggernaut Of Fornication is quite possibly the catchiest song on the whole album. Complete with a frantic keyboard intro, it moves into a triplet-laden verse and a chorus that is as fun to scream along to as it is infectious. Battle Cry is one of the faster song on the album, complete with blastbeats, churning rhythms, yet an ethereal keyboard passage in the mid-section. Hellfire grooves just as hard as the other songs on the album, but should be noted, for it contains the only appearance of deliciously shrill power metal vocals on the whole album (at 3:45) and a wicked, but brief solo shortly thereafter. Speaking of vocals, Bryan Kemp has a well-done dual vocal style, employing both Laiho-style screeches and death metal growls, similar to Helge Stang from the German band Equilibrium.

While the album did not receive quite as good of a production job as Equilibrium’s superb debut album did, the mix here is quite solid. Nothing too raw, nothing too sterile, just a nice amount of balance and breathing room that all instruments get to share. Although each song is relatively similar to the next, there are enough nuances in each track to keep the listener coming back for more. As mentioned before, the band is not doing anything quite new, mixing the speed and melody of melodic death metal, the groove found within bands of their home country, and the presentation of a cheesy power metal band, Destroy Destroy Destroy have created a solid debut that will satisfy anyone looking for a catchy, energetic, enjoyable and totally METAL experience.
Killing Songs :
Hang The Vermin, Ripped Apart By The Juggernaut Of Fornication, Battle Cry, Seduced By The Locrian Temptress, Hellfire
Dylan quoted 80 / 100
Other albums by Destroy Destroy Destroy that we have reviewed:
Destroy Destroy Destroy - Battle Sluts reviewed by Thomas and quoted 86 / 100
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