OBSCENE GESTURE – Straight Outta The Gutter

The story of Obscene Gesture started in the minds of Chuck Profus (Agent Steel) and Guy Green (Gutterthug) 10 years ago. The idea materialized when the two musicians with some friends recorded a six-song demo during Halloween of 2005, having Vince Simpson of Tormentor responsible for all the guitar leads. After the end of the recording sessions, the band’s line-up was completed with the addition of Vince Dennis of Body Count / Steel Prophet and George Robb of Agent Steel.

At the end of 2006, the demo CD entitled Straight Outta The Gutter reached the Metal Express Radio headquarters as a prime sample of Obscene Gesture work. This demo was initially released in October of 2005 and was re-mastered during August one year later. It comprises 6 songs and a spoken intro counting something less than 11 minutes of total time duration.

There is an 80s atmosphere all over the demo with influences from infamous bands like D.R.I., S.O.D, Agnostic Front, and even Slayer. Indeed, the band plays old-school Thrash with a great deal of Hardcore elements; the angry in-your-face attitude comes straight from the Body Count school, and the guitar leads look upon Slayer during the Undisputed Attitude era. The album sounds as it should, featuring a raw production with Punk rhythm guitars, Thrash ear-bleeding solos, and bone-crushing percussion.

After the spoken intro “Do You Believe?,” there is the Crossover attack called “Don’t Matter” that counts for less than 1 minute. Despite the short time duration, there is a fast-as-hell Thrash guitar solo that cuts into the solid Punk rhythm section. “Fallen” continues with the same tempo that is just perfect for moshing and classic stage diving! Green’s screams his lungs out, underlining every word of the full of hate lyrics. Hardcore gives its place to classic Thrash Metal during “Enough” that kicks in with a guitar solo full of tremolo and high-pitched notes, bringing to mind Kerry King’s famous performing style. “Killing Kids” comes next to remind of the glory days of D.R.I., with songs like “Suite And Tie Guy” from the Four Of A Kind historical album. The low-tuned headbanging riff in “Lovely” slowly builds the tension that soon after bursts into fast drumming and staccato rhythm guitar … reminds of Entombed’s tormenting and heavy sound . The album closes fast and aggressive as it started with the half-minute Speed Metal attack entitled “What You Gonna Do.”

Fortunately, as these words were being written, the band is working on a full-length album where they will continue “giving the finger” to all the Nu-Metal, Emocore rubbish that has flooded and corrupted the American Metal Scene. Back in the 80s, there was a motto for all the new bands saying “Support the Underground!” … and that’s what you should do with Obscene Gesture!