UMUR
"Twisted Metal" is the debut and sole full-length studio album by US, Tampa, Florida based death metal act Blastmasters. The album was released through Deathgasm Records in 2008. It´s most likely that the album was recorded in 2005 though, which is consistent with most sources saying that Blastmasters were only active from June 2004 to 2006. When 3/4th of the Diabolic lineup quit Diabolic and formed Unholy Ghost it ended up being a very shortlived adventure, because shortly after releasing the "Torrential Reign" in April 2004 that project disintegrated, and drummer Aantar Lee Coates assembled a new lineup and formed Blastmasters with lead vocalist/bassist Jesse Jolly and guitarists Jeff Parrish and R.J. Reinagle, some of whom Coates would shortly after revive Diabolic with. So "Twisted Metal" was already recorded but ended up being shelved for a couple of years, while Diabolic began recording new material in late 2006, until Deathgasm Records picked it up for a posthumous release.
Stylistcially the material on "Twisted Metal" is in a furiously fast-paced, brutal, and aggressive death metal style. The music is technically well played, featuring ultra fast tremolo riffing, blistering screaming chromatic solos (and even a more melodic one on "Putrid Future"), a fast-paced and razor sharp rhythm section (yet still raw and organic sounding), and some brutal yet intelligible growling vocals in front (and the occasionally higher pitched screaming type vocals for variation). This is old school brutal death metal to the bone. There´s not even the slightest contemporary influence here. Even the heavy mid-paced sections are old school...no breakdowns or hardcore tinged heavy riffs here.
"Twisted Metal" features a raw, brutal, and detailed sounding production, which is perfect for this type of music. It´s definitely among the best sounding productions on any of the Diabolic or Diabolic-related releases. So upon conclusion "Twisted Metal" is a high quality death metal release by Blastmasters. Shelving an album of this quality for any number of years is a near crime in my book, and "Twisted Metal" deserves much more attention than being reduced to a footnote in Diabolic´s history (much like the equally unjust fate of "Torrential Reign (2004)" by Unholy Ghost). "Twisted Metal" is killer US death metal release featuring some of the same traits as material by Morbid Angel and Decide, and fans of the early releases of those artists are recommended to check out this album. A 3.5 - 4 star (75%) rating is deserved.