UMUR
Survival of the Fastest is the debut full-length studio album by UK ( Northern Ireland) crossover/ thrash metal act Gama Bomb. The album was independently released in a very limited amount of copies in September 2005. Survival of the Fastest has later seen a label release when it was re-released by Witches Brew with two additional tracks taken from the band´s 2004 demo The Fatal Mission.
The music on the album is classic fast-paced crossover/ thrash metal. An old school eighties style that a band like Municipal Waste has also been a succesful exponent of in the last 5 - 10 years. The music is simple, raw and powerful. When it is most hardcore punk influenced I´m reminded a bit of Dayglo Abortions, but Gama Bomb generally put emphasis on their thrash metal elements. The vocals are really enjoyable. They are raw and full of attitude. There are even some high pitched screaming and also occasional riot gang vocals in the music. The 11 tracks on the album are all pretty short ( 2 - 3 minutes in length), but very effective. This is perfect music for drinking beer, putting on your old denim jacket and banging your head til it hurts. The band´s kitchy horror lyrics are of the kind that puts a smile on my face. Songtitles like Zombie Creeping Flesh, Zombie Kommand and Hell Trucker are brilliant in my book. Of course it´s so and so with the originality and the songs are also rather one-dimensional in the end. I can´t say it bothers me much, but I guess the album could have been a bit more diverse.
The production is raw and a bit primitive, but it´s still pretty enjoyable. After all it´s an independent release.
Survival of the Fastest is not the best crossover/ thrash metal release I´ve ever heard, but it´s an enjoyable album that fully deserves a 3 star rating.