Trash metal band Eradicator release their sixth album, The Paradox, on 20th September, marking the band’s 20th anniversary, ahead of that is their new single ‘Drown In Chaos’.
Described as “a pure thrash metal grenade”, Eradicator plough through this fourth single from the The Paradox at a speed of 230. At around 3:30 minutes, the song is also the most compact track on the new collection. It kicks off with a precise guitar riff that is recognisable with a slight shuffle feel. Drummer Pitti enters with an underlining groove, which soon develops into a straight high-speed thrash beat. The vocals start with the first verse and the lines are shouted into the listener’s ear canals quickly, rhythmically and with cool variation. The chorus of ‘Drown In Chaos’ is catchy – ‘Drifting Away – Out of the Light’! The first hook is followed by a break in the rhythm that merges with the vocal line and emphatically emphasises the words of the lyrics. A little later, the bridge deserves special attention before the second chorus begins. Here, the additional hook line connects the two parts of the track in a particularly striking way. The C-part is formed by the furious guitar solo, which is introduced by a short tempo break and oriental-suggestive sounds!
Lyrically, ‘Drown In Chaos’ deals with the theme that we are all born innocent. Why do some people develop the insurmountable urge to see the world in flames? Is it the environment? Is it the genes? Or are some really inherently evil individuals? The fascination with fire and destruction was probably experienced by many as a child. The character sung about gives in completely to this urge and conjures up the metaphorical demons of chaos.
The cover artwork depicts this character. With a burning glass, a demonically grinning child ignites a model of the globe, symbolising what true evil is capable of. Diana Ampilohova created this image to visualise the lyrics of the song. The single, as well as the entire album, was mixed/mastered by Sebastian ‘Seeb’ Levermann (Orden Ogan, Asphyx, Brainstorm) and produced together with Seba Stöber.
Available digitally, check out the video here at RAMzine.
Back in August, ‘Beyond The Shadow’s Void’ was the third single from the forthcoming album and its opening track. It was inspired by the reporting of significant misdemeanours by great artists and driven by the question of whether one can still consume the cherished art without hesitation.
Long before Jon Schaffer of US metal pioneers Iced Earth was involved in the storming of the Capitol in January 2021 and Til Lindemann used his position of power to pressure women into sexual acts, the master of morbid horror stories Howard Phillips Lovecraft was already surrounded by obvious xenophobic and anti-Semitic tendencies. The lyrics deal with the moral challenge that a reflective consumer of the art in question must face in this case. The special thing about it is that the lyrics are inspired by H.P. Lovecraft’s writing style and choice of words.
Eradicator begin the song with an atmospheric rain backdrop that introduces the melancholic, clean guitar intro. The brute walls of guitars shatter the calm and the storm develops into a pounding headbanger. The anger with which the lyrics are spat at you drives the verses forwards. The patience to experience the approaching chorus is rewarded with a catchy melody and twin guitars with earworm potential. Until the last note, ‘Beyond The Shadow’s Void‘ builds up to a furious thrash metal thunderstorm.
The Kraken dethrones the master. For the illustration of this single cover, Bianca Rother used the depiction of the immortal monster god Cthulhu from Lovecraft’s stories.
Available digitally, you can check out the video for the single and previous ones here at RAMzine.
‘Kill Cloud’ was the single before that. The term kill cloud is used to explain military use of the civilian internet and the information that our networked smart devices collect and transmit. The song lyrics are explicitly inspired by an interview with a female drone pilot who participated in several real theatres of war at the same time. She killed de facto people on the other side of the globe from her home office, in a country whose culture was foreign to her. The metaphors are reminiscent of a computer game and, together with the pilot’s greatest concern, whether her hot coffee will be on her desk in the morning, represent the absurdity of the situation – the abstract military dehumanisation of killing.
The cover of the single shows a uniformed fighter from an elite unit, surrounded by ominous drones that only know the command “Kill”. The bombed-out backdrop visualises the cruelty of war. The young Ukrainian artist Alina Volnianska is responsible for the illustration, having created this work of art with an awareness of the sad reality of a destructive war of aggression to which her homeland is falling victim.
Lyrically, ‘Eradicator’ describes the processes of industrial animal fattening and slaughter. The mechanically monotonous and deadly efficiency of a slaughterhouse inspired Henry Ford to produce his cars on assembly lines. The paradox here is that the godfather of the “assembly line” is animal slaughter. Although the processes of meat production are sufficiently documented, consumers can still ignore the largely cruel facts through selective perception. The text has no claim to moral authority, but rather a descriptive character. Everyone can and may draw their own conclusions from what is being sung about.
The single cover was penned by Bianca Rother and shows a grizzly skull with antelope antlers in front of an industrial skyline on a mountain of bones. The single, as well as the entire album, was mixed/mastered by Sebastian ‘Seeb’ Levermann (Orden Ogan, Asphyx, Brainstorm) and produced together with band member Seba Stöber.
To be issued via Metalville Records, the ten new songs deal lyrically with the contradictory nature of being human and are said to present many musical facets, not only of thrash metal. Sebastian ‘Seba’ Stöber (Guitar/vocals), Robert ‘Robb’ Wied (Guitar), Sebastian Zoppe (Bass) and Jan-Peter ‘Pitti’ Stöber (Drums), from the Sauerland region in Western Germany are not afraid to refine and develop their new compositions stylistically.
Regarding the new album, Seba Stöber said, “We don’t want to make a name for ourselves as moralizers, but rather reflect the issues and problems of our time. As artists, our task is also to stimulate a discourse!”
Like its predecessor, the album was mixed and mastered by Sebastian ‘Seeb’ Levermann (Orden Ogan, Asphyx, Brainstorm), and tracks featured are: ‘Beyond The Shadow‘s Void’, ‘Drown In Chaos’, ‘When The Shooting Begins’, ‘Kill Cloud’, ‘The Paradox’, ‘Hell Smiles Back’, ‘The Eleventh Hour (Ramble On)’, ‘Perpetual Sacrifice’, ‘Fake Dealer’ and ‘Debris Of Demise‘.
