The Plague

Between their debut and the second full-length, Nuclear Assault released the here presented EP. Firstly, in order to avoid misunderstandings: do not think of those nonsensical EPs of today which are filled with half-baked demo versions, useless live recordings and abstruse cover songs. "The Plague" was much better. Nuclear Assault presented six brand new tracks. The band pulled out all the stops. Each and every song differed from the other tracks in a significant manner. What they had in common was the well balanced production. The guitar sound was perfect for that kind of music, the drums sounded powerful and Danny Lilker´s bass also played a pivotal role. Crowned by the appropriate vocals of John Connelly, the mix could be entered on the credit side of the account.

"Game Over" kicked off the vinyl. The delayed title track of their debut was an instrumental with a fairly ordinary structure and a slightly simple-minded rhythm. Stoically stomping, it did not blow your mind, but its unswerving persistence had its own charm. Honestly speaking, I think that it was a courageous decision to start the EP with this unusual piece. But however, already this song indicated that the high speed approach of the debut did no longer prevail. The sinister "Nightmare" and the almost melancholic title track confirmed this. It was highly interesting to see the new facets of Nuclear Assault´s sound.

Nevertheless, the four musicians had lost none of their currishness and energy. In particular the hyperspeed bolide "Cross of Iron" left a trail of devastation. But the main thing was that Nuclear Assault still possessed its snotty attitude. They did not show consideration towards anyone. Connelly was pissed off and combative at once. Inter alia, he did obviously not feel any sympathy for the legal system. "Justice", the best track of "The Plague", clearly illustrated his aversion. Connelly expressed his contempt in a dedicated manner while the composition scored with its heavy verse and the dynamic up-tempo chorus. Screaming guitars after the chorus added the perfect touch. No doubt, the energetic band was still capable to write stirring high speed songs. A general correction of the musical course was not intended and I appreciated their reliability.

The very special "Buttfuck" completed an EP that did not lack of quality. Well, it did not come as a surprise that it could not compete with the outstanding debut. But it offered more than twenty minutes of intelligently constructed music. Speed freaks should know at least "Justice" and "Cross of Iron".

With a title such as this “The Plague”, it was pretty evident that Nuclear Assault were not really interested in writing music to have listeners hold up their lighters and sing along love choruses. After creating an absolute thrash classic “Game Over”, the east coast boys decided to enter the recording studio again to record some left over tracks that they may have been written for the previous LP, and release it in a comparatively shorter package.

Result? Well, here’s the deal. Six full length tracks which includes one speed metal instrumental and one unnecessary assault on a glam metal icon given a thrash metal manifestation. The rest of the tracks are gritty thrashers very much akin to some of the lengthier material on the former release. Production wise there’s not much notable difference between this and its predecessor. In other words, the output is pretty beefy with every instrument being heard with absolute clarity.

Connelly’s vocals sound snarly as much as they sound slightly hilarious to say the least. They’re a matter of acquired taste for many, but personally they fit the band’s sound perfectly well. He also happens to handle the six stringer duties along with Anthony Bramante. The young and dynamic bassist Dan Lilker who would go onto to play with several popular heavy metal acts later, shows his talent here and proves why he would go onto become a legend. And what can be said about the man behind the drum kit, Glenn Evans? He could pound that skin as hard as anyone back then.

You want riffs? Bludgeoning and brutal riffs? You’ll find them all here. One of the reasons why Nuclear Assault would go onto become a thrash legend was the riff structures these guys could create. You listen to those riffs once and you’ll be guaranteed of listening to them over and over again and I say this from a personal experience. After the maverick little instrumental beginning comes in the first real lyrical thrasher “Nightmares” with a peach of a main riff that tears away into an instant classic of a song. Speed is practically present on all the tracks especially the final closer, “Cross Of Iron” which is a brilliant thrasher accentuated by the strong double bass drum work and ultra fast riffing. The only time they go a few notches down on the speed on this EP is the title track where the emphasis is more on melody than raw thrashing. It’s still a very interesting composition nevertheless with strong social and political overtones that speaks of the effects of a nuclear holocaust.

Calling these folks crossover thrash would be slightly unfair as they stay into thrash territory for the most part, but that’s a different argument. The fact of the matter is that Nuclear Assault along with Overkill and Anthrax led the east coast thrash juggernaut and this EP played a very important role in forging their sound and lyrical content that would eventually yield two high quality classics in the form of “Survive” and “Handle With Care”. Highly recommended for listeners of old school thrash.

Nuclear Assault was one of the more exciting New York contestants in the thrash Olympics of the 80s, in particular the body of work incorporating their first three albums, after which the quality of their songs fizzled (not to mention the abysmal joke of a comeback album Third World Genocide they put out a few years back). The Plague is an EP they released between the great Game Over and the thrash-ter-piece Survive, and notable for continuing their brash and noisy industrial grade thrash assault, as well as the great, mellowing title track.

Instrumental "Game Over" kicks off the album with some simple, flowing chops, the song could easily have had lyrics and fit in with Survive or Handle With Care. "Nightmares" is a quality rager, and as usual it features the bands bright, boundless energy exploding around a traditional NWOBHM/speed metal foundation. "You Figure It Out" is mediocre at best, an increasingly speedy crossover punk/thrashcore piece with goofy lyrics. Thankfully the band returns to what is important for the remainder, and the 2nd haf of the EP is superior, in part due to Connelly's memorable vocals. "Justice" is a pensive thrust of speed verses spiced up with some gladiatoral riffs. "The Plague" is the slowest track here, with a doom/thrash overtone, but ultimately very catchy even as Connelly's vocals soar close to off-key when he tries to up his register. "Cross of Iron" is the best of the faster material on the EP, summoning forth the iron gang locomotive of the band's better full-length material.

Sound-wise The Plague is similar to any of their other late 80s fare. A bright but noisy mix, guitars reverberating forth as they energetically infuse classic metal riffing with a caustic edge. Connelly's unique, torn sounding vocals remained intact here and are one of the true distinctions of the band. The material is dark and consistent, with the final three tracks dominating in quality. "You Figure it Out" is pretty stupid, but everything else is worth hearing.

-autothrall
http://www.fromthedustreturned.com

After the solid debut of "Game Over", Nuclear Assault really hit their stride with this EP. A far superior production was one reason this EP hit even harder than its longplaying predecessor, with honest to goodness low end lending a knockout punch sonically. The bass is clear and resonant and the guitar sound is much thicker and meatier, with a booming drum sound, making the songs on hand here that much more hurtful.

The songs, that's right, the songs. And a nicely short and (not so sweet) batch of steaming thrash metal with razor-sharp riffing they are. "Game Over" leads things off with a powerful mid tempo instrumental and Glenn Evans poundig the tar out of his drums. This has a great headbanging feel to it. Their punk influence comes out to play on "Justice" in particular, with the thundering drums and screaming guitar leads grabbing your ear between verses and choruses as well as the cynical, socially-aware lyrics. The title track was a rarity for them at the time, a slow and churning number with a great feeling of impending doom and apocalyptic dread in line with the then-emerging threat of AIDS. "Cross Of Iron" shreds hard with an unrelenting assault and more socially themed lyrics having to do with the loss of individual rights, a common theme from John Connoly's pen. And their trademark loony humor is in evidence as well with "Butt Fuck", which I think is rather funny, myself. The middle bit is hilarious and still makes me laugh even all these years after its release. Unlike future releases where the humor became forced and uninspired, this is actually laugh out loud funny.

In short, this is, IMO anyway, NA's shining moment in the spotlight. Even though "Survive!" was a damn good album, it didn't have quite the same power and intensity as this EP did. And its production didn't have the same impact as this EP did. So I do highly recommend you seek this out. "Game Over" is a good strong debut album, but this was NA at their strongest.

I always liked most of this EP. The production overclassed that of 'Game Over'and the last remaining speed metal tendencies were finally replaced by some good old thrash (except for the titletrack).

Opening tune 'Game Over' is a great song to start a concert with. Instrumental and midpaced it sets the mood. The opening riff of 'Nightmares' could have come straight from their first album but the song as a whole isn't all too impressive. 'The Plague' is a doomy song. Never been my favorite. It just goes on and on although I do like Connelly screaming 'Preying on its victims' and 'You'll die of the plague' in a higher pitched voice on the chorus.

'Justice' is much better. Here we can hear Nuclear Assault like they were going to be on 'Survive'. The vocal melody in the verse is somewhat different than we were used to from Connelly, being far less aggressive. And no, the 'Now we'll see what the future can bring' part is not awful. It really gives the song an extra edge.It is the second best song on this EP.
Best song is 'Cross Of Iron'. Now this is quality thrash metal! Double bass, aggressive vocals, high pitched screams and simple yet dead effectly riffs. Okay, I must admit the chorus is not their best but the following guitarsolo part is easily their best one ever. Such power and such catchiness!

I am one of those people that really like Butt Fuck. There's always room for fun in thrash metal I say. The way the songs speeds up and the blues intermezzo. It's just great!

4 great songs and two lesser ones. Still a great EP

Whoever coined the phrase "avoid this like the plague" certainly weren't talking about this Nuclear Assault EP. The best of all the little EP's put out by the band between '85-'87, The Plague is a nasty set of songs that serve as a perfect compliment to the band's debut, though at times it manages to be even better.

And one such time is the very beginning of the album. The intro to "Game Over" is monstrous. The guitar distortion has certainly been cranked up for this album and the intensity with it. Listen to the double bass under that riffage and tell me Glenn Evans isn't stomping the shit out of your eardrums. Easily one of the mightiest thrash instrumentals ever. The rest of the songs continue in typical Nuclear Assault fashion, though a bit longer than their earlier tracks. John Connelly's voice is a bit of an acquired taste on here, but his and Anthony Bramante's solos are not, as they've clearly gotten better from the debut. And the lyrics are just as dreary as ever. If you thought Game Over (the album) was bleak, it's a basket of puppies compared to "The Plague." And considering the band still displays a potent blend of riff creativity, this is just as enjoyable as the full length album that precedes it.

And for the record, "Butt Fuck" is a cool song. It's hard to beat ragging on the 'Crue and including random blues breakdowns in your thrash songs.

This is definitely worth picking up, since none of the songs are available on other recordings (unlike the Brain Death EP, of which 1/3 of it can be found on Game Over) and they all rule. Fans of the band and thrash in general would do well to get it.

Always so solicitous and sometimes funny Nuclear Assault has made an EP. But what kind of EP? A good EP! Yes! I may not be objective, because NA one of my favorite bands. But let's try to write this one. As objective as possible.

Ep is equipped with topical cover with nuclear powerplant under meltdown. Powerplant in Tshernobyl was blown up just a year earlier. Musically this package of six songs takes up it's position somewhere between the Game over and Survive lps. Most of the Game over's hardcore influences have been wiped away, and the band is evolving further to it's own thrash sound. So this is somekind of interval work. John Connelly's vocals are different than in Game over. He doesn't scream so much and his vocals are overall more low than high. They're even slower.

Dan Lilker's threatening bass sound starts the first track, the thrash instrumental "Game over", which could have been on previous lp, mostly by it's name. "Nightmares" is ordinary NA song, what is only a good thing. The song is lyrically depressive and sad. That is terminated in next song, "Butt fuck". It's dedicated for Mötley Crüe's Vince Neil. This is kind of song that NA wouldn't never release on album. It has some guitar parts what could have been taken from Crüe, but the song is raw thrash. Vocal melodies are easy to remember (they're so hilarious). Songs lyrics aren't even printed!

Rest of the ep's material are sometimes preaching, ordinary NA songs. "Justice" sounds like it's what's left over from Game over-sessions. "The plague" is something straight from the Survive album. It is slower and gloomy, and it's intro is much alike to "Fight to be free" from the Survive album. Guitar solos are dark and depressing. It's the best track of this ep. "Cross of Iron" is fast and violent, straight from the Game over album. It has more hardcore influnces than the rest of the songs combided together.

This is essential ep, important piece of NA's discography, which shouldn't be missed. If you're a NA fan, you buy this separate or combided with Game over lp. I'm a fan, I love this!

Well, it's not nearly as good, because it's a lot shorter and they decided to take some creative liberties in throwing in some sucky ideas just because it's an EP.

The first song on here is... a song called Game Over, go fig. It's a nifty thrash instrumental, and since Nuclear Assault are some of the gods of riffage, may as well start by showing that off. GOOD IDEA, BATMAN!!

Then, the first 'actual song', Nightmares... this again sounds like it should've been on the Game Over LP (hey, get the CD re-release with Game Over and The Plague, and it is!) - I still have no idea what the fuck the lyrics are at the end, "break their skin, yeah, take your life with a knife..." or something. Kinda stupid once I think about it, but what fun especially with the sinister growls. Break your walls, lock your doors, no way out!!!

Then, the reason why this is just a stupid little EP: Butt Fuck. Yes, it's a funny song, especially if you know whom they are making fun of, but it's a really BAD song from a musical standpoint. Then "Justice" starts promising, except there's that really bad "now we'll see, what the future will be" part, which just blows donkey cock, and I'm sorry, but that is that. The rest of the song is cool, especially the monstrous thrash break. Nuclear Assault are the kings of monstrous thrash breaks, and this shows why.

The title track... sort of midpaced with a little intro, and overall a good song - maybe the only good midpaced song they've ever done. "Now there's not much left." Then, one final thrasher to close things off. Cross of Iron is simple and effective, moving along at rapid-fire speed... "so bang your head, something something smashing through a wall" - man, it may help if I understood the lyrics.

Overall, worth getting. Just because it comes with the indispensable Game Over LP nowadays.