Blood Duster - Str8 Outta Northcote (1998)

I absolutely fucking love this album! I remember during the mid-late '90's, many grindcore bands were beginning to kook out and incorporate such elements as techno, industrial, classic rock and other such groovy oddities. For me the result was pure sonic bliss. I've always loved my music to be a bit on the weird side and so I wholeheartedly embraced this micro-revolution and looked forward to each and every bizarro release that came my way.

I remember first hearing a couple of tracks off of this album on the godly 'Solid' compilation put out by Relapse back in '97. I was thrilled to hear that Blood Duster were delving deeper into the classic rock that they toyed with on their earlier releases (Fisting the Dead, Yeest) what with the inclusion of Hammond organs (!!!!!) and plenty of foot stompin' grooves scattered throughout. This album reminds me a lot of Groinchurn's stellar 'Sixtimesnine' LP which itself reminded me of a cross between Dishormonic Orchestra's 'Not to be Undimensional Conscious' and Pungent Stench's ass kicking 'Club Mondo Bizarre'. Make no mistake though, this isn't just a compilation of knee-slappin' hootenannies. There are quite a few absolutely brutal numbers that go straight for the fucking throat, complete with absolutely maniacal shrieking and low end roars. Of course the sick and bizarre humor of the boys from down under is what makes this album a complete package for me. As much as stuff like early Napalm Death made an impact on me at the time of its release, I began to grow tired of their rather straightforward approach and I for one was relieved when they opted for a more death metal influenced sound on 'Harmony Corruption'. The reason I bring that up is that I've always found grindcore as a genre infinitely more interesting when it's not taking itself too seriously. In fact, the goofier, the better (Monastat 7, People).

At the time of this album's release, I have to say, Relapse was on fucking fire! I was still in my early 20's and consuming a fair amount of pot and hallucinogens and every time I attended a show, I could count on one of those utterly bizarre Relapse comps to be in circulation. It was around this time that I began to loosen up from my rather "militant" death metal stance and started to enjoy there wackier side of grind, industrial, etc. It was a perfect time for me to delve into the confinements of this album!

From the hilariously gruesome fold out CD inlay to each and every track within, Str8 Outta Northcote is a bona fide classick in my book and fully representative of the limitless essence of grindcore. Aces!