photo by Pri Secco
(Our friend Derek Neibarger (Godless Angel) introduces us to a Brazilian band that he’s very excited about.)
My introduction to the Brazilian thrash trio, Nervosa, came in January of 2014 in the form of a promotional video which showed the band performing the track “Masked Betrayer” from their debut EP, Time of Death. The first four minutes of the video were dedicated to interviews with vocalist/bassist Fernanda Lira, drummer Pitchu Ferraz, and guitarist Prika Amaral. I couldn’t understand a single word of their native tongue and my attention nearly wavered up until the short film switched to the band ripping their way through “Masked Betrayer” in what appeared to be their rehearsal space.
The music was raw, fast, and aggressive, and I was immediately transported back my teenage years when I was swept away by the thrash movement of the mid ’80s. This was the same savage energy and intensity that corrupted my youth and branded me a metal junkie for life. I couldn’t wait to hear more Nervosa!
I didn’t have to wait long. Their new album, Victim of Yourself, dropped a month later and was everything the promo video had promised and more. Recorded, mixed, and mastered by Heros Trench and Pompeu at Mr. Som studio in São Paulo, Victim of Yourself is twelve tracks of blistering death thrash. The album art was created by Andrei Bouzikov and is very reminiscent of classic thrash covers like Megadeth’s Rust in Peace.
The album opens with rolling thunder and ominous industrial noise that fades into a slow instrumental crusher complete with sinister harmonizing leads and Slayer-esque clean guitar, and it serves as your last chance to buckle your seatbelt and text your loved ones before the sonic pummeling begins. And what an utterly glorious pummeling it is!
Victim of Yourself is a nonstop barrage of neck-snapping riffs that crunch and lash out, threatening to lay waste to your speakers while still managing to be melodic and catchy. Ferraz’s drum work propels the songs with a ferocity and intensity that strengthens Amaral’s killer riffs and menacing leads without overwhelming them. Riding atop this metal beast are Lira’s scorching screams, a fiery vocal performance brimming with attitude and conviction.
Just one listen of Victim of Yourself was all it took to make me a die-hard Nervosa fan. In a time when many metalheads view thrash as something owned exclusively by its first generation, such as Slayer and Exodus, and even go so far as to dub the current generation as “re-thrash”, Nervosa represents what today’s thrash could and should be. They’ve effectively captured the magic of the genre’s origins without simply mimicking it. They wear their thrash influences on their sleeves while effortlessly incorporating elements of death.
I’m a huge fan of contemporary thrash bands such as Havok, but my feelings for Nervosa are something different altogether. This is the kind of metal that makes excited for what’s around the corner, because it goes beyond imitation or tribute. Nervosa is the real thing and I think they’re fucking awesome. I hope you think they’re fucking awesome, too!
Victim of Yourself is out now on Napalm Records.
https://www.facebook.com/femalethrash
http://nervosaofficial.com/
13 Responses to “NERVOSA ARE FUCKING AWESOME”
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Found these guys when my editor back at my old site assigned me to a review of their debut album. Great band.
i’m still cranking this album a couple times a week, even though i’ve had it for over a year 🙂
I seen them on Brutal Assault in Czech republic and it was fucking awesome !!
arrrgggg, i’m so jealous!! I’ve been posting desperate pleas on their Facebook page to get them to come to the USA for months! 🙂
Thhink the same as the author.Saw Nervosa acouple of week ago i Sczecin Slowianin Club.I.m 43 now but still deeply involved ih thrash/death comunity..and was so overwhelmed by the idea of meeting such a true,savage ,much needed band then when i entered the Venue (much time before the show) and saw the Girls before rehersal i was speechless and could only shout “Nervosa”!!! from a distance hm and the show itself only confirmed all the expectations Long live Nervosa and come back to Poland as soon as possible
Slawomir Kaminski
I’ve watched dozens of live videos on YouTube and they’re just brutal onstage! 🙂
Good review, will check out the band, and really — thank you for not saying “This all female band” or “These sexy vixens from Brazil” or “With a ferocity belying their smoking hot looks” or any of that other shitty cliches that people use when describing women in metal.
Thank you! Nervosa are amazing musicians and they deserve to be recognized as just that, their gender is irrelevant! 🙂
Suuuure, but theirs also nothing wrong with recognizing how attractive they are. I just like that it is not a selling point, just a nice bonus.
Such a great band! They remind me a little of Coroner in the way they blend some death metal into their thrash. But they’ve got to be one of the exciting new bands in metal at the moment.
They’re definitely one of my favorite new metal bands of last couple years 🙂
i love this band ,great metal they make!! power to the metal girls
Es imposible que un macho metalero deje pasar la belleza de estas mujeronas, y más encima son excelentes en la música que ejecutan!!!!!…Un verdadero sueño 😉