Vim Fuego
As far as recording quality goes, this live album is the equivalent of those fuzzy snapshots of the Loch Ness monster or Bigfoot. There is sort of a vague impression of what's actually there, but it could be anything really, and is hardly convincing.
This album was always going to be a one off shot, only one chance to get it right. Nailbomb existed in the studio for one blistering album and two live shows, this being the second of those shows. It was recorded during the 1995 Dynamo festival. It may have been a great live performance. It just doesn't sound it here.
The show kicks off solidly enough with a blast through "Wasting Away". However, it is instantly noticeable the samples and electronic beats are not fully in phase with the rest of the sound. Perhaps Eindhoven was windy that day, but the samples, which were an essential part of creating the Nailbomb identity, are almost completely lost.
But after that, it just seems to all go downhill. It is a truly live album, with all the fuck ups and piss poor sounds left in, but after the amazing 'Point Blank', this really doesn't cut it. Max's vocals seem to drown out everything else, and the rhythm guitar sounds flat.
All is not lost though. The rumbling "Sum Of Your Achievements" is an aural steamroller. "Religious Cancer" would have been an excellent fist pumping shout–along anthem in the live arena.
However, after that, the whole show really just tails off terribly. The cover of the Dead Kennedys' "Police Truck" seems like a school orchestra played it. It is out of time, and you can almost feel everyone on stage (including DK’s drummer D.H. Peligro) looking around wondering what comes next. The cover of Doom's "Exploitation" is a little better, except someone fucks up the vocals. The rest of the live songs are just plain poor. It is almost comforting when 'Sick Life' finally tails off into feedback oblivion.
Two studio tracks were tacked on the end of the album, apparently leftovers from 'Point Blank'. Enough said. Some things best remain unreleased.
In the liner notes, Max and Alex say, "The Dynamo show is full of mistakes and technical problems, but that's how it was on the day. We think it captures the spirit of the band, unlike a lot of (live) albums today". Many live bootlegs sound better than this. If this is the spirit of Nailbomb, then it was killed off just in the nick of time. This project should have stayed in the studio.