Nervecell - _Human Chaos_
(Independent, 2004)
by: Paul Williams (6 out of 10)
From the opening riff of this debut album by the UAE's premiere death metal band, I find myself in joy at the fact that finally there are bands coming through in the UAE that are showing their love for all the great old-school death metal bands. _Human Chaos_ is a five track affair of dark and heavy riffs which are catchy as hell, creating a certain sound that I think suits a band coming from the Middle East. Having been around since 1999 the band has gone through line-up changes due to the constant moving that is life in this region, but the first stable line-up consisted of guitarists Barney Ribeiro and Rami Mustafa, with the duties of bass and vocals being left to James. Being unable to find a stable drummer, they decided to use session drummer Adam Madhavan.

So kick starting this album we have "Human Chaos", which is a great song I have to say. The chugging of the opening riff really gets things started, making you want bang your head along to it and chant "Human Chaos" along with the vocals -- it just really gets you into that type of mood. Many people have actually complained to me about this song being longer than it should be, as it is seven minutes long and the overall riff does feel quite repetitive, but then something happens which just changes my perspective on the song, and it's the solo. It's seemingly just daring me to pull out the old air guitar and to play along. So I'm one track in and I already feel as though I've taken too long to hear about this band, and the second track just seems to nail home this thought. With "The Darkened" I am again revisited with that nostalgic feeling; I feel as though I'm finding out about Morbid Angel or Death all over again, and this is when I realised the main reason I like these songs is because of the old-school leanings. Now don't get me wrong, this is a good album, but my main thought is why should I want to listen to this when I can listen to _Covenant_? Many ideas behind the songs also seem very déjà vu, such as the aforementioned "Human Chaos" and album closer "Demolition".

Maybe I'm being a bit mean by saying they are just trying to copy old styles, because there are a few things which show that these guys have talent, such as the fact that they haven't blatantly ripped off any riffs from any of their idols. Also the songs can be slower and slightly subdued compared to other death metal bands, which I think shows the band has incorporated other ideas into their music. To try and sum this review up for you, I did find this album to be quite good musically, but in some some ways it lacked the energy that could have made it a truly great debut.

Contact: http://www.nervecell.net

(article published 10/10/2008)


ALBUMS
7/23/2011 A El Naby 7.5 Nervecell - Psychogenocide
5/29/2009 P Williams 8.5 Nervecell - Preaching Venom
GIGS
5/8/2009 P Williams Motorhead / Arch Enemy / Opeth / Chimaira / August Burns Red / Nervecell / Hatred / Scarab Dubai Desert Rock Festival 2009
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