Death Metal – Page 192 – Wonderbox Metal

Antropofago – Æra Dementiæ (Review)

Antropofago are a French Death Metal band and this is their second album.

Antropofago’s latest release is based around the concept of dementia and is a mixture of brutality and technicality.

The Brutal Death Metal influences propel the band’s carnage forward effortlessly while their Technical Death Metal side allows them to experiment with all manner of interesting ideas. The two warring sides complement and rein each other in so that the songs don’t go too much in ether direction.

It’s also important to note that the songs are, in fact, actually songs. A lot of Death Metal has a tendency to focus on the individual riffs or sections of a track with only a superficial regard for the song as a whole. Antropofago take a holistic view of the tracks and each song is recognisable as such. The album benefits from this consistency of vision and the tracks on Æra Dementiæ are memorable, surprisingly catchy and actually individually identifiable as distinct entities.

The band have a decent heavy sound that complements their style. The groovy bits sound meaty, the fast bits sound unstoppable and the technical wizardry and lightning melodics sound hot enough to burn. The bass is just audible enough to make an impression and the drums are crazily inhuman on occasion.

The singer has a classic Death Metal growl that seems to suck all of the air out of the room.

Antropofago have unleashed a very strong album on the world. This is some quality Death Metal that combines songs, brutality and depth into an appealing package. In a world of disposable music this one has some longevity to it.

Highly recommended.

Intravenous Contamination – Drowned in Human Fluids (Review)

This is the début album from German Brutal Death Metal band Intravenous Contamination.

Intravenous Contamination play USDM/Slam style Death Metal with plenty of chug, groove and blast.

The vocals are guttural pigsqueals that are as inhuman as any in the genre. The singer has a voice that’s as brutal as the music and she sounds utterly deranged.

The songs are the equivalent of boulders dropping form the side of a mountain. Unsubtle, blunt-edged and dangerous to get in front of.

The recording is dense and thick, layered with violence and ill-intent. This gives the songs a squirming, alien feeling that makes their aggressive assault all the more effective in some ways, but curiously muted in others.

Heavy riffs abound and there are no flashes of colour or melody. Everything is blood-red and determined to cause maximum damage.

This is one for hardened Death Metal fans who only care about the ugliest music. Brutal carnage and bloody rage resides within. Dare you listen?

Favourite Track: Carnal Incitement.

Kataklysm – Of Ghosts and Gods (Review)

Kataklysm are from Canada and this is their twelfth album. They play Death Metal.

Veteran band Kataklysm have returned with another 46 minutes of music that continues with their trademark vision of Death Metal as a balancing act between brutality, melody and groove.

After decades of practising and perfecting their art Kataklysm have their formula nailed down. Their Death Metal combines blasting brutality with a melodic sensibility that means these are actual songs first and foremost. Kataklysm were never going to put out a dud album, and Of Gods and Ghosts once again shows why they’re at the top of the Death Metal pile.

As with all of their work it’s very riff-heavy, with colossal grooves a way of life for the band. Their songwriting has been perfected to the point now where these riffs merge seamlessly into their more melodic counterparts and Of Gods and Ghosts is so incredibly catchy and full of hooks it’s just a surefire winner for anyone how likes Melodic Death Metal.

With all of this being said, I like the fact that there’s still extremity here; this is Death Metal after all. Kataklysm can still blast with the best of them and there’s plenty of Northern Hyperblast alongside the slamming riffs and melodic refrains.

The vocals are shouted growls that are a little higher on occasion than some of their past releases, but still do their job well in providing a focus point other than the frenetic riffs or pummelling drums.

For Death Metal that’s straightforward, instant, heavy, melodic and very, very catchy you can’t get better than this.

Macabre Demise – Homicidal Parasites (Review)

Macabre Demise is a solo Brutal Death Metal project from Germany and this is his second album.

This is just over 26 minutes of chug-friendly Brutal Death Metal that’s guaranteed to get the blood pumping and the head moving.

There’s a good mix of blast beats and slower/mid-paced heaviness on Homicidal Parasites. It’s a mix of the USDM and Slam styles, touched up with a bit more of a European feeling in places.

The songs don’t shy away from a bit of melody when needed, which is a nice thing to hear. It’s not a common part of Macabre Demise’s sound, as the songs largely opt for a more direct, brutal, chugging assault, but it’s an added facet to their sound on occasion.

There’s a lot of mosh-friendly sections that are bouncy and groovy. The tracks specialise in aggressive destruction that’s strangely accessible for a band of this style.

The vocals sound like someone wiping the floor with the Cookie Monster. Deep growling is complemented by higher screams when necessary to add that extra bite.

The production is decent and the album benefits from a good recording. It sounds, and I believe this is the technical term, PHAT. Or something. In any event, it’s a very satisfying sound that the songs make the most of.

So, quality Death Metal from this German outfit. Me like.

Vorzug – Call of the Vultures (Review)

This is the début album from US Death Metal band Vorzug.

This is Old-School Blackened Death Metal that takes the brutal nature of Death Metal and adds a Blackened sheen via the guitars and high screaming.

The vocals primarily consist of deep grunts and are backed up by the aforementioned screams. The singer sounds like he’s gargling acid and his cookie-monster style is quite monstrous.

The guitars have a deeply ingrained Blackened edge to them that combines dark melodies with an older Death Metal influence. This results in a pleasing selection of riffs that provide a fresh perspective on the Old-School style.

The band have a good ear for a catchy riff and the Black/Death style means that they have just the right ratio of brutality to melody. The songs harken back to an older era where a good song was worth more than being the fastest/most technical/most brutal/etc.

Vorzug appear to be very talented at what they do and Call of the Vultures is notable for providing an Old-School fix but in a fresh-sounding way. Their passion is apparent for all to see, and in that way they remind me of the recent album from Gruesome, even if stylistically we’re in more Blackened waters here.

The music is propelled forwards by a strong drum sound, though all of the instruments sound good. It’s nice to hear the bass too, especially as it’s used to enhance the songs and is allowed to make its own mark on the tracks.

A very strong album, made a very enjoyable listen by the songwriting skills and catchy Blackened riffing. Definitely worth 33 minutes of your time.

Fuck the Facts – Desire Will Rot (Review)

Fuck the Facts are a Canadian Grindcore band and this is their tenth album.

Fuck the Facts are always a good listen. Playing by no-one’s rules but their own, they play Grind with their own agenda and are wonderfully individual.

They combine most different aspects of Grind, including some non-Grind elements too. Labelling them as Progressive Grindcore is not too bad of a description. From blasting brutality to melodicism to experimentalism; Fuck the Facts have got it covered somewhere in their discography, (and on this release), and they do it very well indeed.

These songs are largely, (but not exclusively), short blasts of aural carnage, although there’s much more to the band than just this. Longer songs and more experimentally diverse songwriting, (including solos, melodies, Death Metal, Progressive Metal, atmosphere, noise, cello, piano, etc.), mean that there’s a lot on offer here.

Sitting pretty among similarly individualistic Grindcore such as Cephalic Carnage, Cloud Rat, Antigama and the like, Fuck the Facts have built an impressive legacy for themselves over the 16 or so years of their existence and Desire Will Rot only cements their sterling reputation further.

The vocals alternate between the main singer’s acidic shriek and the bassist’s deathgrunts. It’s a combination and team effort that works very well. The main singer has a very individual and charismatic high scream and her voice sounds as nasty as scraping nails.

This is 39 minutes of challenging and impressive Grindcore. It’s not for people who just want the latest scene-clone; this is thinking Grind for the discerning connoisseur, and yet it still remains its visceral nature despite this.

A must listen.

Vorage – Vorage (Review)

This is the début release from UK Death Metal band Vorage.

This is dense Death Metal that’s akin to a churning maelstrom of distortion and abyss-like darkness.

Vorage can be compared to similar bands such as Portal, Mitochondrion and Ævangelist; they specialise in creating nightmare soundscapes in which horrors come to life. Mix this with a Morbid Angel influence and you have a band that means business.

Vorage are dirty, murky and impenetrably evil. The music sounds like it has been dredged up from the darkest, dankest pit in order to savage Death Metal’s soul, corrupting it to its malevolent will.

There’s only three songs on this release, but it’s still 20 minutes of music that will be too off-putting for most to stomach, but if you can hack it then it’s a grime-ridden gem of a release.

There are a few tasty riffs here, hidden beneath the swirling gloom, but it’s mostly about the atmosphere and things that lurk in the fog. Obscure melodies occasionally add sick, warped light to the cacophony, only to disappear again shortly after being birthed.

The vocals are indecipherable guttural incantations, bereft of humanity and rich with malice. It’s all very enjoyable, as far as these things can be enjoyed, of course.

A very promising release from a band who know how to weave terror into the fabric of their Death Metal assault. Recommended.

Organ Dealer – Visceral Infection (Review)

Organ Dealer are a Modern Grindcore band from the US and this is their début album.

Boasting a strong sound, Organ Dealer have come to smash! This is brutal music that’s bound to appeal to fans of extremity and destruction everywhere.

A fast, focused assault of tasty Grind is given further backbone by a Death Metal base and a heart of pure ferocity.

The songs are well written and paced, which might sound an odd thing to say of break-neck Grindcore but this isn’t a pure blast-frenzy; Organ Dealer know the value of a good riff and are not afraid to use it for maximum effect. When the mayhem slows down they’re just as devastating as when they’re going all out.

I like an album like this that essentially compresses Modern Death Metal into a tight ball of rage, clips the songs to about 1-2 minutes in length and then pours hot, scalding Grindcore on top of everything. I mean, what’s not to like here? It’s fast, ferocious and brutal, all with a modern veneer and enough musical talent to make it stand out.

The vocals are scathing screams that will leave you breathless. Deeper deathgrunts are also used and the impression is very much one of intensity and extremity. I can only imagine Organ Dealer would be quite a spectacle live if they can reproduce this faithfully.

Visceral Infection has the timeless dynamics of Nasum and Napam Death and the modern brutality of Maruta and Pig Destroyer. As such, it’s a damn fine listen.

Tune in and Grind out.

Bowel Stew – Debridement (Review)

Bowel Stew are an Italian Brutal Death Metal band. This is their third album.

Bowel Stew like their gore and their buckets of blood. But what they really like, of course, is huge helpings of Brutal Death Metal.

Across these 25 minutes, the band give us nine tracks of unrelenting brutality, including a Brodequin cover.

This is not for the faint of heart, nor is it for fans of pretty, polished Death Metal. This is as underground as it gets and Bowel Stew are interested in impressing no-one but themselves with their butchery.

The vocals are so low as to be almost inaudible. Almost. What we actually get is a voice that growls like an oncoming storm rumbles in the background. It’s inhuman and menacing.

The music is a murky and impenetrable mix of fast guitars and metronomic drums. There’s little in the way of songs here. Instead, Bowel Stew are essentially being as brutal as they can for the love of it. This is just a couple of steps away from completely unhinged Grindcore, and it’s only an undercurrent of Death Metal structuring that prevents this from happening.

This kind of ugly, atavistic Brutal Death Metal will appeal only to a small subset of a small sub-genre of a small genre, etc., but if you do want a fix of no-questions-asked raw barbarity and carnage then I would suggest you check them out, as Debridement is not without its gory charms.

Bearstorm – Americanus (Review)

Bearstorm are from the US and play Progressive Black Metal. This is their second album.

Bearstorm. Say it again, slowly. Bearstorm. Fantastic name. I was expecting something utterly ferocious with a name like that, but Bearstom are nothing if not surprising. They do have a ferocious element, but for the most part there’s a whole lot of other stuff going on here.

The music is a curious mix of Progressive wanderings, Blackened bite, Technical Death Metal Jazz-wizardry, Post-Metal experimentalism and Southern Sludge.

Their sound is pleasingly hard to pigeon-hole actually. The Progressive Metal influence is apparent from the start and infuses everything else at a deep level. The Black/Death/Sludge/Post-Metal influences in their sound take their cues from this and the band have interesting music at the very core of their being.

I suppose…Mastodon meets Enslaved meets Opeth meets Inter Arma meets Ephel Duath meets Pyrrhon…

The songs are varied and individual affairs. There’s a lot of ideas on display and Bearstorm never shy away from being different or going their own direction. It’s to their credit, as too many bands simply ape what has gone before them, so when a band like this comes along it’s a real pleasure to see them doing something different form the norm and attempting to forge their own sound.

Vocally the singer has a largely Blackened scream that’s supplemented with pitch-black growls on occasion. In many ways the guitars are the focal point of Americanus and the vocals provide an undercurrent to these. They’re done well though so there’s no real complaints from me on this score.

Clearly a lot of time and effort has gone into Americanus, to the point that the band have re-recorded the entire album for maximum effect; this is a re-recorded and re-issued version of their 2013 album. Having never heard the original version all I can say is that this version sounds pretty damn good.

An interesting, exciting and fresh-sounding record; Americanus is more than deserving of your attention.

Favourite Track: Glacial Relic II. An epic that’s Progressively atmospheric and even contains a Country influence. Amazing.