ArtistInfo

First Aid
Nursed

Album DE 2014 on Iron Shield Records label
Rock (Power Metal, Thrash)

Originally submitted to (The Metal Observer) on June 8, 2015. Thrash metal has often presented cartoonish visuals with an eye for both shock and humor, and there is something deliciously ironic about a zombie, ninja nurse offering to help someone by burning a brand into their flesh while the surrounding city burns. Naturally the visual exterior of an album isn't always a guarantee of a similarly outstanding musical affair within, but First Aid's third go at a studio LP Nursed definitely peaks one's curiosity with its uniquely drawn artistic expression. The band itself has been around since just before the turn of the millennium, and thus one might expect a somewhat different take on the style than a number of bands who came in a little later, if for no other reason than that circa 1999 the style was still heavily engrossed in the post-thrash influences of Pantera and Machine Head. Thankfully, this German outfit is largely untouched by the static character that generally typifies groove metal, though they are definitely cut from a more modern mold than a typical revivalist band. In keeping with the band's external imagery, there is a mixture of comedy and seriousness going on with the music itself, generally leaning a bit closer to the serious side of things. A couple sound bits from Robert Duvall's iconic scene in Apocalypse Now grace the ears at the beginning and toward the end of the listen, surrounded by what can be best described as a well rounded balance of modern-tinged heaviness, speed, and occasional fits of power metal oriented melody. While the band's style is generally understood as being power/thrash in demeanor, it leans a bit more towards a modern Slayer sound than anything else, particularly what said band has been generally known for following Seasons In The Abyss. It's most apparent in the vocal work of Chris Karl, who basically sounds like a dead ringer for Tom Araya minus the banshee wails, though occasionally he employs a more melodic, yet still rough edged shout that is mildly reminiscent of Hetfield. Guest vocal slots are used for added effect, culminating in something a bit more smooth in the case of the chorus of "Rise Of The Dead", though also providing a slight death metal edge at other points. For the most part, this album tends to cook at a fast, but not too fast tempo with a general air of simplicity and groove dominating the riff work. Sometimes the riff work reverts back to a pre-1990 mode and almost embodies the NWOBHM tendencies of early to mid 80s albums such as Kill 'Em All and Show No Mercy, but even when this occurs, the general flavor of the album lends itself a bit more to an early 1990s sound with a thicker production somewhat reminiscent of recent outings of Exodus and Testament. The dueling solo assault is somewhat reminiscent of a King vs. Hanneman emulation, but in more of a controlled, less chaotic fashion that would embody a Holt vs. Hammett back and forth if such a thing would have occurred after 1987. Overall, the execution of these elements results in a fairly even presentation of punchy thrashing, though a few noteworthy highlights include the generally orthodox Slayer emulation "Lifetime Torment", the older school and somewhat Judas Priest sounding riff monster "Grimace Of Lies" and the power metal infused and extremely catchy closer "Rise Of The Dead". Though I remain generally unfamiliar with this band's previous albums, the changeover in lead vocalists and the generally wide gap of seven years between their previous album and this one, would seem to suggest that they've most likely evolved their sound a bit and may have come from a more typical revivalist formula at the time. But for anybody that would be looking for something that tends to follow the generally fast and frenetic character of what was going on between 2006 and 2011 where bands were generally reliving the 1980s, this is cut from a different mold and will probably sit better with those who went for Dark Roots Of Earth and Blood In Blood Out, with maybe a less compressed guitar and drum sound. Overall, it's a solid album, though it gets a bit predictable and tends to play it a little bit too safe at times, and may function better as an occasional listener than a short-term obsession.

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