Nasum

Sadly, Nasum’s guitarist/vocalist Mieszko Talarczyk was in Thailand when the tsunami hit; after a long period of waiting and wondering, his body has been found and he has been declared dead. It’s a tragedy to lose anyone, and when it’s a member of one of the best grindcore bands out there and one of the few great metal producers of our time, it’s even harder to accept. Shift stands as Talarczyk’s last work, and what a wonderful legacy the man has left behind. With this full length, the band’s third album in the genius mode (the early material was nothing to scoff at, either), the Swedish quartet continue to plow through with their near-trademarked mix of ludicrously fast grind and groove-laden near-hardcore. It hits the spot so perfectly for speed freaks, making this one dangerously addictive album. As always, the drumming is incredible, always prompting me to pull out the old air drums as this disc is spinning. And even if a few of the guitar parts seem to bring a cross-eyed feeling of déjà vu along with them, they rip and tear through that immediately, with every crust riff bringing with it a damn cool grind riff. Although the similarities to the past couple are rampant, the band clearly isn’t trying to break new ground within their two-minute songs. Rather, it’s an all-out socio-political attack set to some of the best music on planet Earth, with a production sound that pleases to no end. R.I.P. Mieszko, and thanks for the incredible music.