Album Review: Paralysis - Mob Justice
Reviewed by Jon Wigg
Weird one this. I love thrash and I love hardcore especially NYHC and this fusion of the two at first didn’t work for me. I found the first couple of songs disjointed as the time changes between the styles felt confused and broke the flow. But on further listens, I got used to this construction and there is definitely a lot to like on ‘Mob Justice’, especially in the later songs where the thrash comes more to the fore and the hardcore becomes more of a seasoning.
Hailing from New Jersey, this is Paralyis’ second full length release after 2017’s Life Sentence. Formed of Jon Plemenik on vocals/guitar, Patrick Harte on bass, Ron Iglesias on guitar and Samith Force on drums, their style of crossover thrash takes no prisoners and leaves subtlety firmly outside. The album is well produced and all parts are clear as a bell, which is often not the case with this genre – often on purpose. The vocal style is straight from the shout along hardcore style throughout and Plemenik even throws the odd "BLEH" in for good measure. The vocals are effective and work well, especially in the slower sections such as in the core banger ‘Nihilist’ and mid-paced thrasher ‘Yet I Stay’.
After the short introduction track, ‘Master Manipulator’ is the first example of the changes in tempo. Some great riffing and blast beat drumming kick in before some thrash licks and then a switch between hardcore and metal soloing that I referred to at the start. This song has definitely grown on me and at just over 2 minutes is an excellent welcome to ‘Mob Justice’. Second track ‘Oblivious’ and album closer ‘Had Enough’ are in a similar vein. More full on thrashers ‘Onward To Slaughter’, Vessel Of Behaviour’ and ‘Cut Short’ with its atmospheric synth closing are welcome additions. ‘Tombstone’ adds some death metal elements to the mix.
The playing throughout is excellent from all involved and the mix allows the bass to be heard which is a plus as there is some great work there. There are a few flaws and the soloing could do with a review as it often seems forced into songs, where accepting that a solo wasn’t necessary could have been a more sound strategy.
Overall I really enjoyed this crossover thrash album from a band who has managed to mix two old styles, that have gone together for almost as long as I can remember, in a fresh way and should be admired.
'Mob Justice' is released on 29th May
