2021 press on black vinyl with lyric insert and poster. Limited250 copies

Razor is about the last band on Earth I’d expect to tackle epiclength song structures, but indeed that is one of the definingcharacteristics of their fourth album Custom Killing, at least ontwo of the central pieces, Survival of the Fittest and Last Rites,both of which are 11 minutes in duration. Kudos for the Canadiansfor trying something different, and in truth they do help break upthe record, so as to not repeat the brash attack cycle of an EvilInvaders. But unfortunately, it turns out that the band doesn’twork their best in such a format, since the endless parades ofriffs Carlo is churning out in these thrash-whales seem as ifthey’ve all been played out on others songs, and nothing reallyinteresting occurs as they bounce back and forth between stockspeed metal and the upper momentum, with the possible exception ofthe more atmospheric, open riffing used in segments of both. I’malso not into the frenzied Russian Ballet rock polka outro, sopretty much any fun I was going to have with this record wasrelegated to the other five tunes, which range from 4-5 minutes oflivid, battering old school speed metal. Tunes like Going Under andForced Annihilation are pretty standard Razor fare, with highvelocity chords, palm mutes and even some darker tremolo passagesin the latter that hinge on a death metal aesthetic. White Noise isgenerally more acrobatic and shifty in terms of its tempos, andSnake Eyes, with an intro that most would consider pretty racist bytoday’s standards, is pretty much what Possessed would have soundedlike as a punk band, Sheepdog’s menacing inflection barking outover a pretty basic procession of chords. Ultimately, I don’t thinkthere’s a single song on this album that I’d place on a highlightreel of the band’s discography, but they don’t break character formuch of the playtime, and there’s nothing all that depressing ifyou’ve a hard on for Executioner’s Song and Evil Invaders. CustomKilling has a looser feel to its production than any of theprevious albums, not nearly so spiffy and audible as MaliciousIntent. The guitars are good and chuggy, especially whenmulti-tracked, but the bass here is extremely plump, and often thenuances of the leads and melodies get lost. Otherwise, it’sworkable and airy, but my least favourite mix they’d achieved toits day, even if it’s not a far cry from its neighbours, and someof the murk of its tone would be transferred forward to the band’smagnum carnage opus Violent Restitution. Sadly, while this doesn’tbreak rank, there’s also the retrospective burden of knowing justhow damn excellent this record’s successor would be, superior inevery respect, Razor returning to the abusive speed and no-nonsensethrashing brawl that put them on the vests and jackets ofgenerations of adoring fans in the first place.

Track list:
1. Survival Of The Fittest
2. Shootout
3. Forced Annihilation
4. Last Rites
5. Snake Eyes
6. White Noise
7. Going Under
8. Russian Ballet

Condition cover: nm

Condition vinyl: nm

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