Toxic Holocaust - Conjure And Command

This is album number 4 in a career filled with splits, live albums and demos since starting in 1999. ‘Conjure and Command’ is complete in the fact that this is the first release to be recorded by all members of the band in the studio, a real group effort, rather than a project based on founder and main man Joel Grind handling everything. Over the years, Toxic Holocaust have been labelled Speed, Thrash, Black metal and so many in between, it’s not really that hard to pin down this music is it? Not knowing if the writing process is a collective effort, I can certainly hazard a guess as to the resulting depth of the recording that is for sure.

Joel and co are certainly influenced by Venom, if the vocals aren’t similar enough to Cronos’ then you will also find the music style varying between Venom’s back catalogue at various stages, yes there are elements of black, thrash, old death and everything in between. A mix of styles is a pleasing result for this album, ‘Nowhere to Run’ really hits the spot and ‘Bitch’ spills some filth all over this recording. If you buy the limited edition, this comes with a DVD recorded in London a couple of years ago, well worth the little extra, and of course, a vinyl issue is befitting of this artist too. Although I am sure the logo change has something to do with the intense intent shown on ‘Conjure and Command’, it is a bit more brutal than some of Toxic Holocaust’s previous efforts I have heard, it does reek of many influences, all of them good, but it does somewhat pass you by in some quarters. However, ‘Conjure and Command’ is a marked improvement in both sound and style presenting a much darker moniker, which is always pleasing.

  1. Judgement Awaits You
  2. Agony Of The Damned
  3. Bitch
  4. Red Winter
  5. Nowhere To Run
  6. I Am Disease
  7. In The Depths (Of Your Mind)
  8. The Liars Are Burning
  9. Revelations
  10. Sound The Charge