Review Summary: Shotgun? Check. Axe? Check. Unique way to use them...uh oh...
Detroit, the ulcer in America’s stomach, the collapsed artery in its heart, the perfect breeding ground for pissed off punks to stew, boil, and explode. This is where the filthy thrashers in SNAFU (Situation Normal All ***ed Up) come from, and they have plenty of decrepit bones to pick. If it wasn’t already readily apparent by the name, the album cover puts the theme of this album and the ethos of this band straight in your face: an unabashed vitriolic lash out at the system.
Now, this is not at all a cover album per se but it’s more like SNAFU are covering a sound, capturing an atmosphere. The themes and ideas of what makes thrash, thrash are well-treaded paths at this point and many of those seminal Big 4 touch stones are 20-30+ years old now. There’s really nothing wrong with that though because SNAFU have an objective and they absolutely nail it as this is nothing but a blood pumping album of shotgun blasts to the face.
Having three vocalists also helps the quartet add an extra necessary layer variation to the fray. All of the lyrics and the deliveries which convey them are as raw as exposed flesh and bare their rage with abandon. Jason Navarro of The Suicide Machines and Shawn Knight of Child Bite also make appearances as guest vocalists. Their contributions aren’t so distinct that if you didn’t know it explicitly, you wouldn’t know they were there. However, Navarro’s track, “Eternal Nocturnal,” is the best on the album, and for what it’s worth, Jason and Shawn’s names must bring some clout to the release.
The production is one the album's saving graces and remains nearly perfect throughout its run time. The band is able to fully transmit all of the pummeling brutality they want to deliver in crystal clear focus. The guitars are crisp and piercing, the drums are crushing, and the bass is dirty, clearly audible, and has quite a bit to say. These songs would not be nearly as good as they are without it because of how much weight it adds to the mix’s low end as well as the maximization of the filthiness of every song.
Unfortunately, at nineteen songs long, Present Day Plague could easily wear out the listener before making it to the finish line. On top of that, it is more or less a two trick pony of just straight-up thrash and punk, and for some, just knowing that alone may mean that they’ve heard this record before they’ve even actually heard it. It isn’t as if there is zero deviation from this formula, as there are some doom and grind inspired sections peppered in, such as on, “Death Trap,” or, “A Trade to Abduct.” But largely, SNAFU spend this their time at full throttle, and the hailstorm of d-beats and riffs are broken up only to reform into more of the same. There are also a few ominous interludes to give you a creepy breather here and there; however, to end this grimy thrash album on a thirty-nine second outro of feedback and chopped vocal samples seems like an unnecessary misstep. The eighteenth (or even the twelfth) song would have done just fine.
SNAFU are not unique enough to stand out from their genres of choice, but if that is not a factor, and you are just interested in putting on something fast and hard-hitting to get rowdy to, then this is just what the doctor ordered.
