Third Degree - Outstay   

Old school brutal grind

It's good to see some underground metal in the form of grind merchants Third Degree coming out of places like Poland (their home town is Olsztyn in the country's north). Third Degree have been around since 1997 and they've released several pieces over those years including multiple 7” singles and split singles as well as a debut full length on cassette (1998's Oblicza Terroru) and a discography compilation in Six Years Of 666. Now signed with their home country label, SelfMadeGod Records, they've put together their overdue second full length Outstay.

Simple, brutal, in your face grind core is what Third Degree are all about and they don't vary too much from that formula either on Outstay. Opening with the pummelling Let's Hail Satan, there's never a moment of doubt as to what you can expect from Third Degree and if Piggsy and the early Napalm Death like Everywhere And Nowhere don't convince you, then I don't know what will. Ojcze Mój is based around a groove like rhythm that still retains “the heavy” whilst Pope Died Tonight is a mostly brutal affair with some almost Godflesh like passages towards the end. Sick is another short brutal blast that borrows a little too much from the main riff to Nailbomb's Wasting Away whilst Why Are They Not Coming? offers some mid-paced sections along the way as well as a few more of those Godflesh like noise-scapes.

The bulldozer like start to No Forgiveness soon picks up pace (as you'd expect) where as This Is Not Life!!! is a pure blast fest from beginning to end. Divine Integrity is a bit of a surprise package filled with slower sludgy riffs that round out one of the albums many highlights. Never Gonna Get Me is probably the albums most experimental track with the vocal effects used during the more ambient Godflesh like sections. Returning with a full on aural assault is the blistering God Sees You and the semi Meshuggah meets Godflesh like Zamienię which wraps up this thirty five minute barrage.

There's little to fault with Third Degree's Outstay. For the most part, it's a constant onslaught of grinding blast beats, furious riffs and gurgling vocals that will instantly appeal to fans of early Napalm Death, Terrorizer and Extreme Noise Terror et al. Just to add something different into the mix, Third Degree toy with sound-scapes and the odd timed rhythms that don't detract one bit from the original intention of the band. If anything, they enhance it and make it a more rounded affair overall. Grind lovers who don't mind a touch of variation should be all over this one.

(SelfMadeGod Records)

Added: August 26th 2005
Reviewer: Simon Milburn
Score:
Related Link: Official Website
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