Label: Godz ov War Productions / Stygian Black Hand
Date: May 10th, 2024
Isn’t it a nice little trait of our beloved type of music, how it manages to respond to whatever sort of stab in the back life has in store for us? Whatever nuances you might be looking to edge out, there’s an artist out there with just the right key to vent. In my particular case, Primitive Warfare’s debut album promised an outlet for unbridled hatred pointed outward at people whose utter humiliation, derogation and moral demise would make my own life a whole lot easier to deal with. The key to my assumption being in the combination of words contained in the promotional sheet and the mere moniker of the US duo.
Essentially, a combination of black and death metal, in their most primitive forms, oftentimes dubbed simply war metal, is what Primitive Warfare brings to the table. A summons to unleash the atomic force without mercy or care about who is on the receiving end of it. Annihilation until there’s little more than dust covering the once green Earth. That’s the whole point and the entire idea behind these two human entities that form Primitive Warfare. There’s no talk of music as a form of art. Only weaponized insult which, much like the nuclear assault itself, doesn’t take into consideration your race, religious inclination, intellectual merit, fame or fortune. The destruction is complete and these guys rejoice in its mere prospect.
So, if you’re a fan of musical hatred and disgust complete, Canadian nuclear trio (Blasphemy, Revenge, Conqueror) runs in your blood and you just want to scream, disregarding the pain in your sore throat… Look no further, Primitive Warfare gives you exactly what you need.
Unfortunately, that’s all there is. Listening to “Extinction Protocol” with objective and attentive ears, delivers not much more than a collection of predictable tracks that will soon perish from your brain without a trace. You’re likely to take away only the memory of a band that threads along the road paved decades ago. Taking the easy way out, so to speak, only makes me desire to return to “Fallen Angel of Doom…” or “Satanic Blood” as absolute pinnacles of the genre. Archgoat, Bestial Raids, Diocletian, Goatpenis… They all do it better.
On a plus side, the band’s sigil, depicting Albert Einstein’s theory of evolution of warfare is just about the most perfect description of not only Primitive Warfare and “Extinction Protocol”, but of the genre in its entirety. For that alone, opposing thumbs up, should you be left with any after the devolution coming after the next atomic bomb drops.
