Thumb

Remember the stink that Victory received when Earth Crisis released Slither? After listening to Victory's latest find, I can only advise all Victory employees to sharpen their defence mechanisms and rationalisation skills. This is nu-metal, German style, right down to the full-time turntablist in the line-up. Name any bunch of seven-string slinging, bar-chord using, 4/4 abusing yahoos from America, add some halting English, and a much better sense of how to write a chorus and you have Thumb. They do stand out from the pack, in that they show flashes of Quicksand influence in "Youth," "More" and "Down Like Me," which incidentally are the album's best tracks. Otherwise, you have to wonder just what the hell Victory is thinking. (