Wow, this album starts off like a bomb explosion. Of course, with a title like "The Merging of the Titans" you need to own up, and these guys definitely do.

Fans of the tried and true Death Metal sound will surely appreciate Erie, PA's EXTINCTION PROTOCOL. The guttural vocals of Mr. Erik flow in the ultra-classic Death Metal style and are nothing less than ferocious. The music is very good too, with every instrument sounding crisp and clear. Needless to say, the production and sound quality here is outstanding. No sounding like they just threw all their instruments down a flight of stairs for background noise the way some bands sound. These guys can really play. And I might add that the drums are like apocalyptic thunder and I love it.

"As Life Turns to Ash" has a bit of a dreary and dismal sound to it musically, that is more prominent in Black Metal. This can be heard here and there throughout the album; however, it is not overwhelming enough to deter the die-hard Death enthusiast. Believe me, they make it work flawlessly.

This band may not have anything overly new and unique to bring to the table, but what they bring is certainly served up top-notch. What I like best about them is that, lyrically, they sound intelligent. Just take a gander at the song titles and that gives you a clue that these guys aren't only prolific musicians, but know how to put some thought and poignancy into the lyrical aspect of their song writing as well. No atypical corpse gut-munching stuff here.

By the end of this album, you will likely feel beaten and battered. But in a good way. It's kind of like how you feel after a very intense, hard-core yet satisfying work out.

EXTINCTION PROTOCOL's "Aeonic Obliteration" is brutal and utterly old-school fantastic.