Nasum

Nasum, a Swedish grindcore band formed in 1992 by Necrony members Anders Jakobson (guitar) and Rickard Alriksson (drums and vocals), would develop into one of that country's premier metal acts, but would be felled tragically by the events of the December 2004 tsunami that brought mass destruction to Thailand, ending the life of (eventual) vocalist and beloved member Mieszko Talarczyk. The original idea was to create a more pure Napalm Death-style grindcore act, based less on theatrics and gore and more on a straight-ahead political message, and although the band sort of let that concept fall to the wayside at the outset, the label that handled parent band Necrony offered Nasum a slot on a split EP. With the idea of recording for an actual release as motivation, Nasum took on a new member in guitarist Talarczyk and recorded six tracks, which would end up on the Blind World split EP, with the band Agathocles making up the remainder. A handful of compilation appearances followed, as well as a few more split 7" appearances, which led to Nasum securing a deal to record an MCD (mini compact disc) of their own with Poserlsaughter Records in 1995. With the release of the MCD ready to roll, label Poserslaughter scored Nasum a gig in Germany, but founder and drummer Alriksson balked at the notion of live performance, and called it a day. Jakobson would eventually move into the vacant drummer's position, and Talarczyk would take on vocal duties in addition to guitar in response to the sudden roster change. More recording -- for EPs, splits, and compilations -- followed over 1996 and 1997, and in 1998 Nasum released their first full-length album, Inhale/Exhale, on Relapse, an American label that had fallen in love with the band's sound after hearing Nasum's recent recordings. With...