Terrorizer - Hordes of Zombies
Ah, the legendary Terrorizer. No band has ever gotten more mileage out of 16 songs… except for maybe Mayhem. Of course I’m referring to 1989’s sempiternal, Death-infused Grindcore classic World Downfall. Arguably Pete Sandoval’s most impressive drumming clinic to date, inarguably one of the records that proved the US could Grind toe-to-toe with the UK all-stars of that era. When Sandoval and the late, great Jesse Pintado reunited in 2006 with Resistant Culture’s Anthony Rezhawk at the vocal helm, it was cause for celebration. But while Darker Days Ahead was a monster of an album that made a compelling comeback statement, time has not been kind to it. Admit it, you can’t remember how a split second of the record goes (and no, the re-recorded version of “Dead Shall Rise” doesn’t count). Unfortunately we’ll probably be saying the same about Hordes of Zombies in six years. You certainly can’t fault the personnel. Rezhawk reclaims the mic with an often intelligible, one-dimensional roar that suits such militant Grindcore perfectly. His Resistant Culture cohort Katina Culture fills Pintado’s shoes more than admirably on the ax. Original World Downfall alumni David “Radikult” Vincent handles bass duties (because after all, he’s been crossin’ the line since 1989), but no worries, there aren’t any Rap or Techno parts. Last but not least, Pete Sandoval is “back” to being Pete Sandoval. To know that he’s healthy, fully recovered and drumming like a human tornado again is worth the price of admission alone. Still, I don’t know if this album is memorable enough to warrant a ton of repeated listens. After the intro, the tag team of the title track and “Ignorance and Apathy” explode, boasting some very Grindcrusher Tour-worthy riffs. But shortly after dizziness ensues while whirlwind-headbanging to “Subterfuge,” the songs start sounding very same-y despite the stellar performances of the parties involved. The once excited mind begins to wander as you start to question how much of a shit anyone would give if this weren’t the legendary Terrorizer. As far as the mid-to-latter portion of the record goes, only the riffgasm achieved on “Prospect of Oblivion” stands out as a true highlight. All complaints aside, I can’t say enough about Sandoval’s metronomic machine gun fire performance. For me the best-Metal-drummer-of-all-time debate ends with him.
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