Today, German thrashers Eradicator release the new single “The Paradox.” The song is the title track of the band’s forthcoming new studio album to be released on September 20th on Metalville Records. The official video for the track can be seen & heard HERE at Eradicator‘s official YouTube channel.
Lyrically, the first single from Eradicator‘s sixth album describes the processes of industrial animal fattening and slaughter: the mechanically monotonous and deadly efficiency of a slaughterhouse, inspired Henry Ford to produce his cars on assembly lines. The paradox here is that the godfather of the “assembly line” is animal slaughter. Although the processes of meat production are sufficiently documented, consumers can still ignore the largely cruel facts through selective perception. The text has no claim to moral authority, but rather a descriptive character. Everyone can and may draw their own conclusions from what is being sung about.
Musically, the song has a lot to offer. The opening drum solo begins with around 200 beats per minute, followed by fast, precise guitar riffs. A driving groove sets in with the verse, which encourages headbanging and is carried by the cutting shouting. The tempo picks up again in the chorus, and the rudimentary melody quickly becomes catchy. Seba Stöber’s deep growls at the end of the chorus form the first peaks in the song. However, when you expect things to pick up after chorus two, Eradicator go one better. Death metal-inspired growls, supported by discordant chord progressions and driven by relentless double-bass attacks, take the paradox to its absolute peak and form the acoustic image of the described cruelty. Only then is the listener allowed to relax. The middle section reveals calm tones, introduced by an almost clean bass run, and leads into a creamy, singing guitar solo. The subsequent build-up leads back to the chorus and a final ecstasy in the repetitive death-metal-inspired C section.
The single cover was penned by Bianca Rother and shows a grizzly skull with antelope antlers in front of an industrial skyline on a mountain of bones. The single, as well as the entire album, was mixed/mastered by Sebastian “Seeb” Levermann (Orden Ogan, Asphyx, Brainstorm) and produced together with Seba Stöber.
The Paradox is undoubtedly the most versatile album by thrashers Eradicator. It will be released in the year of the band’s 20th anniversary. The ten new songs deal lyrically with the contradictory nature of being human and present many musical facets, not only of thrash metal.
The Paradox bears the signature of Eradicator and shows their unbroken joy of playing. The band has now also made a name for itself live. However, the four guys from the Sauerland region in Western Germany are not afraid to refine and develop their new compositions stylistically. On The Paradox, Eradicator begin atmospherically with “Beyond The Shadow’s Void”: The track develops into a pounding headbanger, only to finally erupt into a thrash thunderstorm. In addition to death metal growls, including in the title track, “The Eleventh Hour (Ramble On)” is the first half-ballad in the band’s repertoire. However, Eradicator have by no means forgotten how to swing the thrash club, as they tirelessly prove with “Drown In Chaos,” “Hell Smiles Back,” and “Fake Dealer,” among others.
The lyrical themes on The Paradox reflect the dichotomy and ambivalence of human action and thought. “Perpetual Sacrifice” is about denigrating the weaker in order to make oneself feel greater and about the reversal between victim and perpetrator. “When The Shooting Begins” is about the paradox of wanting to create peace through war – whereby the truth is usually one of the first victims after the outcry of the weapons. The concluding “Debris Of Demise” is a fictional tale of mankind having to evacuate the planet due to environmental destruction, but the saving ark being unable to leave orbit due to the large amount of space debris. Singer and guitarist Seba Stöber says, “We don’t want to make a name for ourselves as moralizers, but rather reflect the issues and problems of our time. As artists, our task is also to stimulate a discourse!”
Like its predecessor, the album was mixed and mastered by Sebastian “Seeb” Levermann (Orden Ogan, Asphyx, Brainstorm), who once again managed to give Eradicator an authentic sound. After 20 years, the four musicians know what they want to sound like, and that’s exactly what The Paradox sounds like. Cover and tracklisting are as follows:
Tracklisting for Eradicator (Germany)’s The Paradox
1. Beyond The Shadow’s Void
2. Drown In Chaos
3. When The Shooting Begins
4. Kill Cloud
5. The Paradox
6. Hell Smiles Back
7. The Eleventh Hour (Ramble On)
8. Perpetual Sacrifice
9. Fake Dealer
10. Debris Of Demise
LINEUP
Sebastian Stöber “Seba” – guitar / vocals
Sebastian Zoppe – bass
Jan-Peter “Pitti” Stöber – drums
Robert “Robb” Wied – guitar
DISCOGRAPHY
The Atomic Blast (2009)
Madness Is My Name (2012)
Slavery (2015)
Into Obliveon (2018)
Influence Denied (2021)
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