UMUR "Citizen Brain" is the second full-length studio album by UK (Northern Ireland) crossover/thrash metal act Gama Bomb. The album was released through Earache Records in June 2008. It´s the successor to the independently released debut album "Survival of the Fastest" from 2005. There have been a couple of lineup changes since the predecessor as guitarist Kevy Canavan has been replaced by Domo Dixon and drummer Ronan Fitzpatrick has been replaced by Paul Caffrey.

Lineup changes or not, stylistically "Citizen Brain" pretty much continues the crossover/thrash metal style introduced on "Survival of the Fastest (2005)". The band have stuck to their guns and have produced another high energy, aggressive, and raw album. They play a style of music which was quite popular in the mid- to late 80s, and even make odes to the era/scene on "Thrashoholic" and "Bullet Belt". In many ways they have a similar approach to contemporaries Municipal Waste (or an 80s act like Acrophet), but there are some differences too and while Gama Bomb don´t exactly play a unique style of music or have a style which is distinctly their own, they still stand out for other reasons.

Most significally they are skilled musicians and the music is delivered with great power and conviction. Sharp thrashy riffs, a hard hittin´ and powerful playing rhythm section, and some very well played guitar solos as icing on the cake. Lead vocalist Philly Byrne doesn´t have the most distinct sounding voice, but his voice and the way he delivers the vocals work well with the instrumental part of the music. He predominantly sings raw staccato vocals, but occasionally he performs a higher pitched scream which is a great weapon in his vocal arsenal. As mentioned above some tracks on the album are odes to the 80s thrash metal scene, while others are about zombies/horror/gore, figthing, sci-fi, and environmetal issues. So the lyics are pretty typical for this type of music.

"Survival of the Fastest (2005)" was a really strong debut album by Gama Bomb, but "Citizen Brain" is everything you could have wished for in a sophomore release. There hasn´t been much stylistic development, but it´s actually not an issue in this case, as Gama Bomb already have a very mature sound. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

Kingcrimsonprog Since being a teenager, my favourite subgenre of Metal has always been Thrash Metal. However, for some bizarre reason, when the New Wave Of Thrash Metal started, and lots of younger bands started making top quality Thrash, I utterly slept on it, not exploring it at all, or sometimes I even outright dismissed it.

This year I’ve been rectifying that, giving bands like Hazzerd, Harlott, Hyades, Havok, Power Trip, Lich King, Mosh-Pit Justice and Municipal Waste their fair shot and being won over time and time again.

The one exception to my New Thrash blind spot has always been Gama Bomb, maybe its because they’re my fellow countrymen, maybe its because they strike the right balance of humour and fun without descending into parody, maybe its just because they write the most memorable songs, but even when I had a “1980s or GTFO” attitude towards Thrash, I’d still find time to listen to Gama Bomb, recommend them to people, and I was even lucky enough to see them live (remember concerts guys?) when a guitarist I knew gave me a free ticket and transport (good guy!) back before I went to concerts regularly or was able to drive.

Many years since I first went in on the band with their Tales From The Grave In Space record, Gama Bomb have now released what I believe to be not only their best album to date, not only one of the best NWOTM albums I’ve heard, not only an album as good as what the ‘80s bands can put out nowadays, but one of the straight-up best Thrash albums I’ve heard to date from any era.

You heard that right. This album is their best one yet. This album can stand proudly up to the best things Slayer or Anthrax have been putting out since the ‘00s, and this album can stand up happily to some things Death Angel or Heathen were putting out in the late ‘80s. Never mind simply holding its own; this album is actively better than most of the output Thrash bands put out in the ‘90s and arguably better than some (if not a lot) classic Thrash and Proto-Thrash albums of 1983-1985 too!

I was a week one buyer (December 2020) after getting mega hyped by the pre-release singles, but it has taken me this long to write a review simply because I wanted to make sure how hard I like it wasn’t just hype or a sort of bubble-gum scenario where the flavour will go away really soon kind of thing. However, a few months later and I still think this record is a damn masterpiece of Thrash.

Songs like “Miami Super-Cops,” “Sea Savage,” “Ready, Steady…Goat!” and “Sheer Khan” just get stuck in my head for days. I have so often been on a walk these days and been unable not to sing aloud “Down, down, town!” during “Miami Super-Cops” when I had otherwise been walking in silence, sometimes leading passers-by to look at me like I am a lunatic. I don’t care, its so catchy it is irresistable!

Alongside top notch, catchy as hell tunes, everything else works perfectly. The production is tight, the playing is brilliant, the vocals just get better every time you hear them (some of those crazy Agent Steel-style screeches are so catchy) and the mixture between serious traditional Thrash music but goofy lyrics just works so well (but importantly, without being comedy music, which is always a turn-off for me). For example, when they go into “What shall we do with a drunken sailor” in the middle of the title track, it comes across as really clever even though it probably shouldn’t.

In summary, if you like Thrash Metal and can get over the fact that the band are not from the 1980s, you absolutely need this album in your collection, no questions asked.

J-Man Northern Ireland's Gama Bomb are often cited as one of the best contemporary bands playing classic crossover thrash, and although it wasn't until 2013's The Terror Tapes that I finally gave the band a listen, this album makes it clear to me why they are so highly regarded by fans of the genre. With their fourth full-length album, Gama Bomb delicately (or not-so-delicately) balances a humorous lyrical approach with killer thrash riffs and irresistible punk energy, resulting in a listen that is nothing but fun from start to finish.

The Terror Tapes doesn't contain anything too revolutionary, but when we're talking about songs with guitar solos as blistering as those heard on “We Started the Fire”, riffs as quirky as the carnival-styled “Terrorscope”, and vocals as powerful as Philly Byrne's performance on “Backwards Bible”, it's clear that this is still a fine example of kick-ass crossover thrash. Established fans of Gama Bomb, as well as followers of bands like Municipal Waste, Birth AD, and Havok, should have no trouble loving these tapes!

Kingcrimsonprog Gama Bomb are a band principally from Northern Ireland, who play a very strict 1980’s influenced form of Crossover/Thrash Metal and incorporate a lot of humour into their lyrics.

Tales From The Grave And Space is their third full-length studio album, after 2006’s Survival Of The Fastest and 2008’s Citizen Brain. It was released in 2009 on Earache Records and is currently available for free legal download off of Earache’s website.

The musicianship is absolutely top notch and even more surprisingly, the production is of the absolute highest quality. This album sounds as almost as good in terms of production as other Thrash Metal albums from 2009 from long established bands like Exodus’s Exhibit B and Megadeth’s Endgame.

Highlights include ‘New Eliminators Of Atlantis B.C.’ as well as ‘We Respect You,’ and album closer ‘Mummy Invasion,’ all of which are fast and straightforward thrash metal numbers; mostly with more of an East Coast feel than Bay Area if you want to get more specific. The album is twelve tracks long, clocks in at half an hour in length.

As singer Philly Byrne has been known to say live ‘I hope you like songs that sound exactly like that one.’ Gama Bomb don’t incorporate anything else into their sound other than pure thrash metal; there are no ballads, no atmospheric buildups, no eastern scales and no fifteen minute progressive songs.

If you are a big fan of Nuclear Assault, S.O.D, Sacred Reich and more modern acts like Municipal Waste, SSS and Evile then Gama Bomb are certainly a worthwhile proposition that you should check out.

This album is very strong and no serious complaints can be made about any aspect of it other than the simple fact that it doesn’t come from the 80s and that there isn’t a whole lot of variety on offer, but if you expect any you may be missing the point of this band a little. If you hate humour in your thrash, you also may want to give it a miss, otherwise however Tales From The Grave And Space is a very good album that thrash fans should seriously enjoy.

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.