Toxic Bonkers

Progress

Selfmadegod Records 2007

Toxic Bonkers might just be the dumbest name for a band that I have ever heard.  Well maybe not quite but it certainly is pretty silly.  So with that in mind how is the music?  Actually it is quite serious.  Progress pounds and torments with a groove laden brand of death metal giving it an almost metalcore feel.  IN this respect they differ greatly from their Polish countrymates like the tight and technical bands like Vader and Decapitated.  Over the course of 4 albums Toxic Bonkers have managed to hone and refine their skills until it has been sharpened to a razor's edge.  Denial hits hard but then relents with some mid tempo groove and clean vocals adding a different angle to their otherwise straightforward approach.  The title track proves interesting as it starts off with a keyboard and spoken word intro and the breaks into a stomping death metal sledgehammer only to break it back down with the keyboards again.  This proves to be the most diverse song on the album and also the most interesting and the alternating dual vocals that occasionally reinforce each other command the listener's attention.  Also the effective use of a haunting sample of Islamic Chants during the song Anti-Violent proves these guys are skilled composers.  Toxic Bonkers is a solid band that delivers tight and hammering death metal infused with hardcore grooves, some thrash riffs, and even some grinding blast beats.  However they never really manage to break free from these paradigms and create anything fresh though that might not really be their aim.  But with their genre crossing style they are sure to have a broader appeal than most bands as I can see both metalheads and hardcore kids slamming to this album.