UMUR "Disaster of Reality" is the 5th full-length studio album by UK thrash metal act Cerebral Fix. The album was released through Xtreem Music in September 2016. It´s the successor to "Death Erotica" from 1992, so it´s been 24 years since the release of the predecessor. Cerebral Fix formed in 1986 and released four studio albums in the years between 1988 and 1992, after which they disbanded (in 1993). Cerebral Fix reunited in 2006 but only guitarists Tony Warburton and Gregg Fellows remain from the lineup who recorded "Death Erotica (1992)", but drummer Andy Baker is no stranger to Cerebral Fix either as he played with the band from 1989 to 1990 and recorded two studio albums in those years. New in the lineup are Nigel Joiner (bass, backing vocals), Neil Hadden (lead vocals), and Chris Doss (guitars, backing vocals). Cerebral Fix disbanded again in 2017.

Stylistically the material on "Disaster of Reality" is a bit of a mess...or at least very inconsistent in style and quality. The album opens with "Justify", which is a heavy thrash metal track similar in style to the material on the three doomy thrash metal albums Cerebral Fix released between 1990 and 1992, but then already on the second track of the album "Mosh Injury", the band moves into hardcore punk/crossover thrash metal territory much closer in style to their hardcore punk/crossover thrash metal oriented debut album "Life Sucks... and Then You Die! (1988)". The hardcore punk/crossover thrash metal connection is further strengthened by the inclusion of two cover songs by Discharge and The Exploited.

The quality of the material is a bit up and down. It´s all well performed, and "Disaster of Reality" also features a powerful and well sounding production job, but the inconsistency of the material and the fact that I wouldn´t have guessed it was Cerebral Fix playing if I didn´t know beforehand what I was listening to, aren´t exactly positives when evaluating the album. The lyrics range from serious to silly (yeah both "Mosh Injury" and "Skate Fear" are pretty silly) but that´s not really strange on a hardcore punk/crossover thrash metal release. Upon conclusion "Disaster of Reality" isn´t exactly the comeback album I had hoped for from Cerebral Fix. It´s not that their early 90s doomy thrash metal phase was anything particularly exciting, but at least they had a relatively distinct sound in those days, which they don´t on this release. "Disaster of Reality" is not an all bad release, and there are redeeming features present, which makes it enjoyable enough while it plays, but it´s certainly not an excellent release either, and it´s just as soon forgotten when it ends playing. A 3 star (60%) rating isn´t all wrong.

Vim Fuego The ‘Fix is fucked. Long live the ‘Fix!

Cerebral Fix never fitted neatly into a single, definable genre of metal. Mixing crossover thrash, death metal and doom, Cerebral Fix would have been equally at home sharing a stage with Bolt Thrower, Cathedral or The Exploited. The closest reference point for ‘Disaster of Reality’ is the band’s first album, ‘Life Sucks... And Then You Die!’ an immature but promising slab of heavyweight crossover thrash, part Cryptic Slaughter, part Celtic Frost. ‘Disaster of Reality’ is a throwback to that previous age, with a casual, under-produced feel to it, with a bit of fuzz and static round the edges, but the band itself is tight as fuck. It has a 1980s crossover thrash feel, mixed with a 90s doom/death attitude, and a fuck-it-all attitude.

First track “Justify” is a solid, heavy hitting opener, a doom/death monster of epic proportions. “Mosh Injury” is Lawnmower Deth-esque silliness, but then without skipping a beat, blasts into the deadly serious “Crucified World”. The song hits one of those slow paced Godzilla grinds which made ‘Tower of Spite’ such a compelling album. And then the band rockets into “Realities of War”, one of the most convincing Discharge covers you will hear. It is followed by “Skate Fear”, which might seem a bit trivial after a serious song, but this cuts right to the core of what crossover thrash used to be- equal parts societal observation and childish fun. And that really is the essence of this band. Fuck only knows what’s coming next, but it’s going to be good.

“Reality Pill” and “Dear Mother Earth” strike a more serious tone again, and are followed by a cover of The Exploited’s “Dead Cities”.

And then when you think you have a handle on things, out comes “Felted Cross”, which wouldn’t sound out of place on Cathedral’s ‘The Ethereal Mirror’, an ode to all the bands of yore which influenced Cerebral Fix’s music.

“Inside My Guts” is a full on hardcore roar of a song, like Agnostic Front with a gutsache. The last track is untitled, a bastard remix of guitar and movie samples, electronica, a throbbing bass line and reggae style vocal shout-outs, with a trip-hop style rhythm. It’s a fucking mess, but it makes sense when you hear it.

The absence of Simon Forrest’s distinctive death/thrash rasped vocals might put some listeners off. Fortunately, Neil Hadden is a strong vocalist, and does not fall into the trap of trying to imitate his predecessor, using more growl than rasp. It still fits in with the band’s bleak, sand-blasted sound, just in a different way.

The word “swansong” often gets used to describe a band’s farewell release, the original definition coming from the belief that a swan gains the ability to produce a beautiful song as it dies. It is bullshit. It would also be bullshit to call “Disaster of Reality” a swansong. Yes, it is Cerebral Fix’s final album, but the music is still as ugly as it always was, and as it should always be.

R.I.P. Cerebral Fix 1986-2017