Negative Reaction is a sludge band hailing from New York. They have been around since 1993, spewing out release after release of no-frills anguish filled music. Definately not the happiest campers, that’s for sure! For example, take a look at some of the title tracks: "Lost", "Loathing", "Suffer". These guys seem to be quite content with wallowing in their own misery. If you’re looking for music with frills and faux-poetry, stay clear away from Negative Reaction!

The music… I love! It’s heavy, dirty and creeps at a snails pace yet is as furious as a pack of wolves. The guitars are heavily distorted and just huge sounding while the rhythm section plods along like a lumbering beast, punctuating each riff and setting that wonderful droning tempo. Under The Ancient Penalty is ALMOST the perfect sludge metal album… except for those damn vocals. Ugh. They remind me of an overweight asmatic Muppet who’s just ran a marathon. The breathless wheezing almost made it impossible for me to finish listening to the album and write this review. A band with this much power and stamina should have a better vocal performance and leave the out of breathness to Grandpa at the old folks home.

With that being said, fans of bands such as Corrupted, Grief and Electric Wizard should give Negative Reaction a shot. The riffs… those beautiful riffs! Highly recommended to lovers of the riff. However, those vocals really got on my last nerve and sadly, this poor CD will probably collect dust for awhile.

Written By: Baroness