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TOXIK
Dis Morta

Massacre (2022)
Rating: 9/10

Those Toxik teaser EPs just a few years ago and subsequent singles did enough to get the tech-thrash fans salivating once again, although I have to admit to having been a tad nervous when hearing that a new full-length was to come.

Toxik has always been one of my favourite thrash acts, delivering thinking man’s metal of the highest order. The New York combo announced themselves back in 1986 with the Wasteland demo, which was followed by an incredible brace of albums, World Circus (1987) and Think This (1989), the latter featuring the sublime ballad ‘There Stood The Fence’ which I still find myself humming several decades later. However, the band went their separate ways in 1992 and it is a shame that this current line-up features only one original member, guitarist Josh Christian… but such is life. Christian is joined by Ron Iglesias (vocals and guitar, Paralysis), Eric van Ruten (guitar), Shane Boulos (bass) and James DeMaria (drums, Heathen), the quintet stirring the prog thrash pot once more with this long awaited ten-song stash.

The first track I heard from this new opus was ‘Power’ and I’m pleased to say it maintains the high levels of thrash intelligence as previously displayed on those classic early efforts. Iglesias is an ideal fit, and while I would have preferred Mike Sanders or Charles Sabin on the pipes Ron still brings strength and diversity to the role. ‘Power’ is a mesmerising, concise and quizzical track that has a solid, chugging groove running throughout its folds, but most importantly it’s the stunning lead work which will have the prog-thrash clan foaming at the mouth. Like Watchtower and other fellow meddlers in the complex, Toxik bewilder but never sacrifice weight or potency, and even maintain a catchy chorus that soars into the stratosphere.

In a sense, one feels that Toxik has begun where Think This left off with the wailing vocals, the crisp chugging, the tight percussion, rolling bass lines and those staggering threads of virtuoso design. This is very much Toxik Mk II, fully armoured, swaggering, riddled with complexity and still epic as with the powerhouse of a title track, the shred-happy ‘Feeding Frenzy’, the melodious harmonies of ‘Chasing Mercury’ and the cold, intricate designs of ‘Hyper Reality’.

This time round it could be argued that Toxik is an even more sophisticated beast. Iglesias just cruises into the upper register of abilities, while muscles are truly flexed on the speeding ‘The Radical’. Strangely, there are flaws lyrically as tracks such as ‘Straight Razor’, although dazzling musically, leave a lot to be desired with some of the words, but this is more than made up for with the alien network of tunes such as ‘Creating The Abyss’ with its Voivod-esque structure.

I still prefer those early album covers with the illustrations over digital artwork, but as comeback albums go this is up there with the best; Toxik remaining a gleaming celestial sphere swirling in an otherworldly climate. While the production feels a touch compressed, Dis Morta displays wonderfully complicated textures without forgetting its ability to thrash hard and fast. Let’s hope the next record doesn’t take another 30 or so years to surface, but for now there’s enough going on here to keep your brain frazzled.

Neil Arnold

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