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.

UMUR "Death Erotica" is the 4th full-length studio album by UK thrash metal act Cerebral Fix. The album was released through Under One Flag/Music for Nations in November 1992. It´s the successor to "Bastards" from 1991 and features one lineup change as drummer Andy Baker has been replaced by Kev Frost. It would be the last album released in the band´s original run as they disbanded in 1993 after touring the UK with Paradise Lost and through Europe with Cancer. The original vinyl version of "Death Erotica" purely featured originals, but the CD version featured four bonus tracks, which are all covers by among others Discarge and Judas Priest.

Stylistically Cerebral Fix continue the doomy thrash metal style of the two direct predecessors. Crushingly heavy riffs, heavy ryhtms, and lead vocalist Simon Forrest´s raw snarling vocals in front. The band have more or less perfected their style at this point, although it´s only small twists which have been made to the doomy thrash metal sound they introduced on "Tower of Spite (1990)" and continued on "Bastards (1991)" (even the sound production is relatively similar to the sound productions of the two direct predecessors). It´s heavy and predominantly slow- to mid-paced doom/thrash metal. The tracks are generally well written, but also a little one-dimensional. A few tracks stand out like the Paradise Lost influenced "Haunted Eyes" (featuring heavy doomy riffs and a melancholic lead guitar melody), but ultimately many tracks are in a very similar style and are a little hard to tell apart.

The musicianship is generally strong, but I´m not a fan of the stiff and sometimes awkward sounding rhythms that Frost produce. A more dynamic drummer could maybe have brought more life to the songs and could maybe have driven them forward providing them with more power in the process. But instead the drumming robs the tracks of power and drive, and it´s a real shame, because there are actually some pretty wicked heavy riffs here. Forrest´s voice and vocals are a treat in small doses, but his performance on the album also comes with a minor issue, as he more or less seems to give the same performance on all tracks. The vocals are simply too one-dimensional in nature and more variation would have been nice.

So there are both quality features on "Death Erotica" and some issues which drag it down a little. That´s another way "Death Erotica" is similar to the two direct predecessors, which were also relatively one-dimensional affairs, but also features some high quality features which still made them quality releases. A 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Bastards" is the 3rd full-length studio album by UK thrash metal act Cerebral Fix. The album was released through Roadrunner Records in October 1991. It´s the successor to "Tower of Spite" from 1990. A promotional video (which aired on MTV´s Headbangers Ball in those years) was shot for the track "Middle Third (Mono-Culture)".

Stylistically the material on "Bastards" continues the heavy and doomy thrash metal sound of "Tower of Spite (1991)" and the two albums are more or less sibling releases in my book. Sharp heavy riffs and rhythms and lead vocalist Simon Forrest snarling raw vocals in front. He has a rather distinct sounding voice and delivery, which is great most of the time, but his performance does get a little one-dimensional along the way. The band are well playing, although the drums are played a little "stiff" and uncreative.

The original vinyl version of the album featured 10 tracks, while the CD version featured 3 additional bonus tracks. Two of those are punk/hardcore covers of G.B.H. and The Damned, which Cerebral Fix run through in great style. Their hardcore past shines through here, but also a few other places in their own material, although it´s seldom on this album.

"Bastards" features a powerful and heavy sounding production job, but the production choices made on the drum sound aren´t the best, and the drums often sound a little disjointed from the rest of the instruments and vocals in the mix. Upon conclusion "Bastards" is a quality heavy thrash metal release though, and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

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

UMUR "Tower of Spite" is the 2nd full-length studio album by UK thrash metal act Cerebral Fix. The album was released through Roadracer Records in late 1990. Cerebral Fix didn´t have the most successful career and disbanded in 1993 after releasing four studio albums (they reunited in 2006). None of which made much impact on the metal scene. They went through quite a few lineup changes in their relatively short career (1986-1993), the most famous one being when bassist Frank Healy departed to join Benediction. This particular album was pretty well backed by their label though and was promoted in various metal magazines at the time.

Stylistically Cerebral Fix took a bit of a left-turn on "Tower of Spite" compared to the crossover thrash metal of their debut album "Life Sucks... And Then You Die! (1988)". While you will still find traces of crossover thrash metal on the album, the music on "Tower of Spite" is predominantly ultra heavy and at times doomy thrash metal. The pace has been lowered considerably since the debut. The slow- to mid-paced tracks are consistent in quality and style. Heavy riffs, heavy beats (occasional more upbeat) and a raw, snarling, and rather distinct sounding lead vocalist in Simon Forrest. There´s little melodic content on "Tower of Spite", and therefore it´s quite refreshing when suddenly in the middle of "Quest for Midian", a melodic harmony guitar section appears. Other than that the music is pretty one-dimensionally bleak.

The sound production is decent and pretty typical for the time. A bit too much reverb on the snare drum and the bass drums sound a bit odd too, but otherwise the sound suits the music. Overall "Tower of Spite" has a hard time convincing me of it´s qualities though. It´s as if the slow pace of the tracks, make them all sound the same and there are generally very few hooks to hold on to during the 11 track, 44:39 minutes long album. So to my ears there is a reason for the relative obscurity of Cerebral Fix. They simply weren´t up there with the best. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.