Aftermath – There Is Something Wrong – Album Review
A crossover band that transformed into one of the most technically audacious, progressively-minded thrash metal bands of the 90's!

A crossover band that transformed into one of the most technically audacious, progressively-minded thrash metal bands of the 90’s, Chicago’s Aftermath have been teetering on the edge of releasing something politically explosive ever since their reformation back in 2014.
Unsurprisingly, There Is Something Wrong is an audacious attack on Government and the hypocrisy of modern society. It’s bullish, belligerent and fuelled by anger and frontman Kyriakos “Charlie” Tsiolis and co. (and this is 3/5 of the lineup which recorded 90’s masterpiece, Eyes Of Tomorrow) aren’t merely vexed, they’re hellbent on pouring scorn on the world they inhabit.
The album’s opening tracks “FFF (FalseFlagFlying)” and “Diethanasia” are the spiritual cousins of Aftermath’s early crossover thrash work, with righteous anger and furious riffing providing the backdrop before “Scientists And Priest” nods (slightly) to the bands more ‘complex’ past. “Smash, Reset, Control” then reveals itself to be the loudest, snottiest, kid on the block and positively reeks of anarchy; disagree with it and it will punch your fuckin’ teeth in!
Those bemoaning a lack of technicality by this stage are then rewarded with “Gaslight” which is an easy fit for inclusion on Eyes Of Tomorrow. After such an incendiary opening, it then becomes evident that Aftermath’s plan was to get progressively weirder as the album goes on. “Temptation Overthrown” is a Voivod-esque blitzkrieg while the epic one-two of “Pseudocide” and the broiling title track culminate in 12+ minutes of unsettling spoken-word intros, obscure noise, shouts, screams, random stabbing guitars, more social commentary and the rumbling, tumbling rhythms of prime progressive thrash, spliced with crossover thrash speed.
It can all be a little overwhelming but that, we would ascertain, is the point!
Unnerving soundbites, cutting commentary, the apocalyptic sounds of war, barbed rhetoric…..this is Aftermath’s pulpit and they’re preaching in order to convert. They want you to resist, they want you to open your eyes, and they want you to stand up and fight back……and There Is Something Wrong is the album to do it with! 8/10
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