Grind YOUR Mind!!!
Xenosapien | Altered States of America | 01/26/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Two disc retrospective of one of the greatest Grindcore bands ever.When Mieszko Talarczyk was killed in last year's Tsunami disaster, a big hole was left not just in the band but in the whole scene. He worked tirelessly playing and writing for NASUM, and using his own studio- "Sunlight Studio" in Sweden- to produce countless Death Metal and Grindcore bands from all over the world, so when information about this compilation was released I was foaming at the mouth to say the least!
Over the course of two discs and a staggering 152 tracks(!) we get all the splits, extra and unreleased tracks and cover versions that the band did and needless to say this f**king shreds. The quality does not subside as the disc goes either, with some of the best politically charged Grindcore ever to be inflicted on the scene, if not the world.Starting with their first recording in 1993, right through to the swansong, simply brilliant "Shift" album of 2004.
Relapse Records seem to have the compilation game bang to rights, much like the recent similar set by AGORAPHOBIC NOSEBLEED. Past ones are also available by both PIG DESTROYER and the mighty BRUTAL TRUTH, but the packaging in this one is quite simply perfect. It looks like a small book with a cd on each side, sandwiching a neat 80 page booklet with extensive liner notes, lyrics and a history of the band all chronographed perfectly, sucking you into the whole experience even more.
The music itself is amazing as we have came to expect from this band. The early songs are positively dripping hate and with a healthy dose of crust thrown into the mix. There is no crappy demo tracks on here either, every track has a clear banging production- even the early ones, most of which are around the thirty second to a minute long (or short!) mark. This helps to make the whole thing flow better, making for a first class Grindcore overload.
Not much more to say really apart from go out and buy the f**ker- you won't be disappointed. Absolutely essential purchase, it has been on constant rotation since I got it yesterday. So I am going to give it a 10/10!
R.I.P MIESZKO TALARCZYK 1974-2004.
"
Nice
ryan | 01/28/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is a good 2 cd collection from all of Nasum's stuff youve never heard before. 152 of non stop grinding. Its nasum, its awsome, and if your a nasum fan you should really pick it up.
Also, dont buy it from amazon, buy it from relapse.com."
Nasum's final grindcore chapter is oh so bittersweet...
Jon Gunter | Greensboro, NC United States | 03/25/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"If you're familiar with Nasum's patented blast-groove-blast scheme and you love it, you're going to love this retrospective. If you harken for progression in their music, forget about Disc 1. This is where you will find the humble beginnings of a band on the verge of creating their own patented sound. It does have some shining moments, but this disc is presented here merely for the fact of completion.
The disc that shines is the second disc. This really showcases the band that Nasum had become and were potentially becoming and is a very bittersweet pill to ingest because of the tragedy that struck the band and their musical potential all coming to a sudden halt.
I give this CD 5 stars because of the sheer fact that as a whole, the set shows the band grow from a dime-a-dozen Napalm Death clone to honing and crafting their own sound while never turning their back on their roots or their strong political stance. I also give it 5 stars for the simple fact that Anders (Nasum's drummer) did such a marvelous job with the layout and the packaging of the CD. Here is a man who wanted to make sure that Mieszko's swansong was done exactly the way he would've wanted it done: beautiful job, Anders!!
Being a huge Nasum fan over the years, one thing that was missed in the set was a possible DVD to show Nasum in the live setting. I'm only complaining about this because I never got to see them perform when they came over to the States for the Contamination tour. Maybe something in the future?
If you are contemplating buying this, act fast because it is a limited edition pressing through Relapse and it will be sold out before too long. RIP Mieszko!!"