In today’s world of metal, it seems almost everyday brings a new subgenre, hybrid, or amalgamation. The days of bands fitting cut and dry under one musical umbrella are becoming more scarce. Take Video Nasties for example. Named after 80s horror VHS tapes that the British government deemed “obscene”, I was expecting some filthy goregrind. Instead, I got what the band describes as “horrifying black ‘n’ roll”. However, I don’t think this tag properly sums them up.
Dominion opens with “Stay Gold”. The song slowly builds up with a sample from an actual video nasty (one of many scattered throughout the album) before shifting to some crunchy Carcass-esque riffs. Ironically, Video Nasties hails from Liverpool: home of Carcass and some other little band if I remember correctly. That would partially explain the resemblance to Heartwork (1993) on songs like “Stay Gold”, “Helvetica”, and “Transvoltum”.
What about those black metal influences? They’re not as pronounced as some would think, but they’re there. The vocals stride the line between 90s melo death and black metal. There’s also some sinister blackened riffs on songs like “Hanging Tree”, “Red of Night”, and “Drone Eagle”. This combination of black and death metal isn’t nearly as odd as I’m making it out to sound…until you throw in the hard rock aspect. Yes, you read that correctly.
Dominion is a hard rocking death metal album if I ever heard one. Instead of putting focus on atmosphere, lyrics, or image, Video Nasties delivers big riffs, tasty licks, and catchy choruses; all through a death metal filter. This is nothing new. It’s exactly what Carcass and Entombed attempted in the mid 90s, but one of the better throwbacks to that era in recent memory. My favorite song is “Viva Death”. On an album of earworms, this is the earwormiest (did I just invent a new word?). It showcases clean, singalong vocals and twin leads straight out the Bill Steer/Michael Amott playbook.
Anything but nasty, Video Nasties serves up a hot, steaming dollop of death ‘n’ roll. Unfortunately, there are some who will look down upon Dominion because of its polished playing and crystal clear production. I’ll even admit that I despise 99% of melo death and death ‘n’ roll. So shoutout to Video Nasties for paying homage to the 1% of these styles I enjoy. If you’re an open minded metalhead willing to check out something outside your wheelhouse, check out Dominion.
7 out of 10
Label: APF Records
Genre: Death ‘n’ Roll
For fans of: Carcass, Entombed, At the Gates