Review: Oxygen Destroyer ‘Guardian Of The Universe’

‘A living nuclear weapon destined to walk the Earth forever. Indestructible. A victim of the modern nuclear age.’ – Makoto Hayashida (Godzilla 1985)

I’m a simple man (–child) give me the over driven violence of death/thrash metal and combine that with the ferocious, earth-shattering lore from the monster-verse, specifically that of Godzilla, and you’ve got this flabby chappy positively sweating with uranium-soaked excitement. Step in Seattle, USA’s Oxygen Destroyer with Guardian Of The Universe, their third glorious full-length and first for three years. It’s out now via the always killer Redefining Darkness records.

Named after the weapon designed to eradicate the world of the greatest threat to humankind and sometimes saviour, Oxygen Destroyer have already released two killer full-lengths – 2018’s Bestial Manifestations Of Malevolence And Death and 2021’s Sinister Monstrosities Spawned By The Unfathomable Ignorance Of Humankind which both sit with pride within my collection. When I saw this review up for grabs, I knew I had to pick it up and chat about these guys’ undoubtedly next killer induction to their growing discography.

Guardian Of The Universe this time features a murderously perfect cover courtesy of the incredibly talented Shoggoth Kinetics, just look at that thing… god damn! I really dig how all three album covers feature similar schemes/layouts, they just look great sitting next to each other… anyway enough about the cover, you’re here to see what I thought of the city toppling death thrash that’s contained within!

Sit back and let its giant foot drop down and crush you into a pile of thin pink paste…

Well, first things first, the upgrade in quality on here is really noticeable. From production to performance, everything on here is a step up from the previously already solid Sinister Monstrosities Spawned By The Unfathomable Ignorance Of Humankind. The sound still has that caustic edge but its wonderfully clear, especially around the vocals being spewed out by mastermind Lord Kaiju, who sounds utterly killer and hella pissed on here. Every lyric is understandable while they scythe through with reckless abandon.

Man oh man! The riffs on this thing, I love how choppy and full of groove the guys have managed to get these, all whilst maintaining that blackened death thrash edge that they have managed to make their own. There are still those Angelcorpse and Vader comparisons that have remained from previous records on tracks like Banishing The Iris Of Sempiternal Tenebrosity but there is a real up-take in the thrashier elements like with face-ripping tracks Drawing Power From The Empathetic Priestess Of Tranquility or the equally vicious Nightmarish Visions Of The Devil’s Envoy which show influence from not only the old school in a Kreator vibe but in the more modern style of someone like Enforced.

This thing radiates quality and, in a bloated genre which is spewing out quality records by the bucket load, make sure you do not miss this one! Sit back and let its giant foot drop down and crush you into a pile of thin pink paste.

Label: Redefining Darkness Records
Band Links: Facebook | Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram

Scribed by: Matt Alexander