Torso – Annihilation Day
APF Records
Release date: 29/08/2025
Running time: 35 mins
Review by: Alun Jones
9/10
You can run, but you can’t hide! It’s January 1st, 1984, and there’s a psycho killer on the loose in this small-town University campus. Can Rita and Christine expose the killer? More importantly – can they SURVIVE?
Are you ready for another blood-soaked album of Grindhouse Garage Metal from Torso? Of course you are. Released by those gallant gents at APF Records, “Annihilation Day” has been created as a soundtrack for a (sadly) imaginary, low budget VHS horror flick. The kind of movie we used to rent out and watch in the summer hols – curtains drawn in daylight. The sort of flick that was so scary, you’d shit your shoes off.
Press play, let’s get things started. First track ‘The Halls Run Red’ begins with an eerie, electronic pulse, and provides some exposition for this gritty video nasty. Soon enough the guitars burst in, like a pub punch up between Fudge Tunnel and Carcass. The resulting splatter fest has a relentless pace as it incorporates three movements, the refrain ‘Dorm of the Dead’ doing more narrative work. Throwing in some brutal Thrash and spacey keys, it effectively conjures the right mood for a 1980’s murderthon.
‘Satanic Nirvana’ begins with some tribal, Killing Joke style drums, followed by a chainsaw guitar summoning the ghost of Hillbilly Death Grunge titans Tad. There’s melody here too, in both the vocals and lead, not dissimilar to early Nirvana (nicely coincidental). It’s powerful and more infectious than a radioactive zombie plague.
After a brief intermission, the audience reaches part two of the presentation with an atmospheric keyboard intro. Then ‘Blast Furnace’ explodes with an unstoppable, lo-fi Murder Thrash riff. Torso do a great job here of melding that ferocity with the symphony-like keyboard.
Finally, ‘Show Your Face’ has a thundering rhythm part that oozes with an almost Industrial groove. It’s a bludgeoning track that seems to have some Revolting Cocks inspiration in there, that again deftly slips some melody in the back door. Eventually, the track boils over into a cacophony of glorious noise, but by then it’s too late – the story is over. Or is it?
With the four tracks on “Annihilation Day” each comprising three mini movements, the soundtrack feel of the whole endeavour is apparent. Well produced but beautifully abrasive, the songs may be long, but each retains its own vibe and the listener’s interest. It would be nice to see this approach explored further in later Torso recordings with greater musical contrast, but for now there’s enough blood, guts and mayhem to make this an unmissable release. Torso have provided another highlight for 2025.
Don’t hide behind the sofa – you cannot afford to miss this!
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This review is brought to you by Platinum Al in association with Ever Metal.
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