UMUR "Out of Hand" is the 2nd full-length studio album by US, California based hardcore/crossover thrash metal act Attitude Adjustment. The album was released through In Your Face Records in 1991. It´s the successor to "American Paranoia" from 1986. There have been quite a few lineup changes since the predecessor, as lead vocalist Andy Andersen has been replaced by Kevin Reed, guitarist Chris Scaparro has been replaced by Sean Sutton, bassist Rick Strahl has been replaced by Eric McIntire (who played guitar on the debut album). Drummer Chris Kontos is the only remaining member from the debut album who still plays the same instrument (and he too would soon leave to join Machine Head) .

Stylistically the material on "Out of Hand" is aggressive hardcore/crossover thrash metal. It´s well performed, raw, and powerful. Sometimes more hardcore oriented than thrash metal ditto and sometimes the other way around. Song lengths are predominantly around the 2 minutes mark and are short and aggressive burst of energy with lyrics about politics, drugs, and social/mental issues. So basically this is US styled hardcore/crossover thrash metal as most people expect it to sound. The occasional humour of some of the contemporary artists in the style (artists like Suicidal Tendencies and D.R.I.), is not present here and Attitude Adjustment generally have a pretty serious approach to their music.

"Out of Hand" features a raw and powerful sounding production, which suits the material well, and upon conclusion it´s a good quality hardcore/crossover thrash metal album. It´s not one of the albums in the genre, which sticks out much, but there´s nothing wrong with the quality and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "American Paranoia" is the debut full-length studio album by US, San Francisco, Bay Area formed hardcore/crossover thrash metal act Attitude Adjustment. The album was released through Pusmort Records in 1986. Attitude Adjustment was formed in early 1985 and after playing local shows along side other Bay Area acts like Death Angel, Vio-Lence and Forbidden and thereby gaining valuable experience and also popularity among local crowds, the band entered Peter Miller Studios to record the "Dead Serious" demo, which eventually got them signed to Pusmort Records. The original version of "American Paranoia" features 16 tracks but some later reissues feature the tracks from the "Dead Serious (1985" demo as bonus tracks.

The music on "American Paranoia" continues the fast, aggressive, and raw hardcore that the band also played on the the "Dead Serious (1985" demo. In fact most of the tracks from the demo are included here in re-recorded versions. The attitude is savage with aggressive shouting vocals, fast drumming and buzzing punked guitar riffs, and while there are mid-paced heavier sections on the album, the pace is mostly really fast and the delivery aggressive and "in your face". The material are pretty standard for the genre and aren´t the most memorable out there, but there are some pretty killer tracks on the album that stand out a bit more than others.

The sound production is unfortunately a bit weak, featuring a very thin and powerless guitar sound, and it´s a bit of a shame, because if you´re familiar with the "Dead Serious (1985)" demo, that release featuring a very raw and lo-fi live sounding production that actually suited the material much better than this "professional" studio production does. "American Paranoia" is widely considered a seminal US hardcore/crossover album from the 80s, but personally I think it´s a pretty standard release for the genre and a 3 star (60%) rating is warranted. Had the sound production suited the music better I might have had a different impression of the album, but as it is, I can´t rate it higher.

UMUR "Dead Serious" is a demo release by US, San Francisco, Bay Area formed hardcore/crossover thrash metal act Attitude Adjustment. Attitude Adjustment was formed in early 1985 and after playing local shows along side other Bay Area acts like Death Angel, Vio-Lence and Forbidden and thereby gaining valuable experience and also popularity among local crowds, the band entered Peter Miller Studios to record the "Dead Serious" demo. The demo was released on one-sided cassette tape. Some reissue versions of Attitude Adjustment´s debut full-length studio album "American Paranoia (1986)" feature the tracks from the "Dead Serious (1985" demo as bonus tracks.

The music on the demo is raw, fast, and aggressive hardcore, delivered by a convincing and passionate band. The 10 tracks on the 14:55 minutes long demo are for the most part under 2 minutes long, and some are shorter than 1 minute long, so it´s safe to say that this is a simple "in your face" type of hardcore release. It´s the aggression and passion behind the delivery that´s the real assets here though, because not all tracks are equally memorable and it´s obvious that these guys have spend more time thinking about getting out playing live, and less time on the songwriting. There are a couple of gems like "Grey World" and "Dead Serious" on the demo though.

The sound production is raw, filthy, and lo-fi sounding, and it more or less sounds like the demo was recorded live in the studio. It´s not an issue though and you are mostly able to make out what´s being played and sung. In fact the raw sound quality suits the equally raw sounding music well, and overall provides the demo with a savage charm. "Dead Serious" is not exactly a revelation of aggressive hardcore and many artists had done something similar at this point in time. Some better, and some worse. It´s enjoyable for what it is, but not what I would call a mandatory listen for fans of aggressive 80s US hardcore. A 3 star (60%) rating is deserved.