UMUR "Experiment in Fear" is the debut full-length studio album by US, California based crossover/thrash metal act Evol. The album was independently released in 1992. Evol were formed in 1988, released a demo in 1989, a demo in 1990, and "Experiment in Fear" in 1992. It proved to be the band´s sole album release before they disbanded later that same year.

To my ears Evol is a classic example of an artist being too late to the game to make an impact. Stylistically they belong with other crossover/thrash metal artists from the era/area like Suicidal Tendencies, Excel, and Uncle Slam, but releasing your debut album in 1992 as a crossover/thrash metal act was simply 5 years too late. While not quite reaching the high quality and uniqueness of Suicidal Tendencies, Evol are fully on par with the other mentioned artists.

Hardcore punk drumming, angry fast-paced shouting vocals, fierce thrash metal riffs, and there you go. That´s pretty much it, although I maybe do have to mention that the band a few times play some more funky rhythms (for example on the opening title track). The sound production is pretty well sounding for the style, although the guitars could easily have been more powerful and dominant in the mix. The band are well playing too and the 8 track, 23:16 minutes long album is over before you know it. It´s not a revelation and this late into the genre´s life, it´s not a seminal release either, but for fans of the genre it should be a nice addition to their collection. A 3.5 star (70%) rating i deserved.