Joel Grind's Yellowgoat: The Yellowgoat Sessions (2013)

Holocausto Toxico

Review by Metallattorney. He is the law.

I am not really sure what this session is that is referred to in the above title. Joel Grind is the mastermind behind Toxic Holocaust, which is a band I particularly enjoy due to its mix of thrash and early punk, calling to mind Hellhammer, Bathory, and Venom. This Yellowgoat project is not considerably different than Toxic Holocaust although it tends to settle more on the speed metal/hard rock stylings of Motorhead, which of course was a big influence on the earlier-named bands. So I am not really sure what to say to introduce this recording. It's basically Toxic Holocaust but with a different name.

I suppose the major distinction between this release and the more recent Toxic Holocaust albums is that this has a little bit more of a rock 'n roll vibe to it. It grooves and swings a bit more than previous albums. Is that enough to distinguish entirely from Grind's other big project? Who knows? But at least it is something of a distinction rather than saying that this is a Joel Grind project with a different name but the same sound.


Obviously if you have heard Toxic Holocaust before, you are going to have an idea of what this project sounds like. But for those that have not, it is fast-paced, thrashy speed metal with some early black metal influences. Yellowgoat sounds like a band out of the early 1980's at the time that Hellhammer, Venom, and Bathory were just starting to break. First wave black metal with a lot of Motorhead influences.

This album is a lot of fun. It is a fun album to listen to while exceeding the speed limit down the highway. Probably. I don't know I haven't done it, I swear. But I am still not completely sure why this is not just a new Toxic Holocaust album.

I give this album 4 out of 5 stars.

[FMA: The album is available for a name-your-price download on Bandcamp.]