Incinerate – Eradicating Terrestrial Species (Review)

IncinerateThis is the third album from US Technical/Brutal Death Metallers Incinerate.

With a quality Death Metal album cover, this is the kind of band that it’s easy to like. Once the usual pointless intro is out of the way, we get lots of brutally satisfying USDM-esque carnage with plenty of chugs and squeals to keep fans of the style happy.

This is a well-oiled Death Metal machine that chews you up and spits you out with a mechanistic relish.

Ultra-guttural vocals are the order of business although some variation is added by some screaming. They hit the spot nicely.

The playing is precise and surgical, with enough technicality to please and enough straight-ahead brutality to satisfy.

If you like your Death Metal in the classic US vein then Incinerate have what it takes to scratch that deep, bloody, sore itch.

For fans of Cannibal Corpse, Suffocation, Deeds of Flesh, Defeated Sanity, etc.

Biopsy – Fractals of Derangement (Review)

BiopsyBiopsy are from India and this is their début EP. They play Brutal Death Metal.

Biopsy take their influences from the USDM scene and even though they’re from India would fit in rather well over there.

The vocals are as deep as any I’ve heard, full of pignoise and bile. The singer is clearly interested in chewing your face off.

The music is nicely brutal with some good grooves and tight riffs amongst the butchery. An impressive amount of chuggery, (it’s a word), takes place here, enough to knock you over.

Moments of melody are few and far between, but there are some brief moments here and there incorporated into the brutality.

There’s enough skill and talent here to avoid dismissal as mere Suffocation-clones and based on this release Biopsy could have a bright future ahead of them in the underground Death Metal arena.

Each song hovers around the 3 minute mark, so the band make an impact without overstaying their welcome. The tracks are solid examples of the style and if you like USDM then Biopsy are waiting for you, surgical table at the ready.

Support the underground!

Bloodscribe – Prologue to the Apocalypse (Review)

BloodscribeBloodscribe are from the US and this is their début album. They play Death Metal.

This is Brutal Death Metal that’s short, nasty, violent and infectious. At its core it has a purity of intent that’s a joy to hear.

The songs are a hearty mix of blast, chug and groove that’s guaranteed to get the blood pumping and the body slamming.

There are plenty of tasty riffs here as well as some squeals, breakdowns, and chug-fests. The band remind me of the older, Suffocation/Broken Hope style of Death Metal and they play it well.

At only 25 minutes in length the band get in, make a gloriously noisy mess and then exit again swiftly.

Bloodscribe have a hideously warm production that reeks of decaying organic matter whilst retaining a powerful presence.

The vocals are guttural delights; sickeningly deep without descending into ridiculous pignoise territory.

A very enjoyable way to spend almost half an hour. Gotta love groovy, heavy Death Metal.

Extinctionist – Portals of Extraterrestrial Invasions (Review)

ExtinctionistThis is the second album from German Brutal Death Metallers Extinctionist.

Ugly, brutal and devastating Death Metal; this is for fans of Deeds of Flesh, Defeated Sanity, Suffocation, Cannibal Corpse, Dying Fetus, etc.

Extinctionist have a good line in groove, chug, technical flourishes and pure demolition-style blast beats. It’s enough to keep any Death Metal fan sated and full.

The recording is clear and strong, with everything sounding crisp and tight. The sci-fi theme does them no harm either, and interludes like Selection sound genuinely malevolent.

Deep, guttural vocals ride alongside the heavy music. The growls are just a shade or two above pignoise, (mainly), and the singer sounds totally committed to the cause.

The songs are largely short and to the point; this is about battering down all defences and causing as much destruction as possible in as short a timescale a possible. The band make good on this threat too.

This is enjoyable Brutal Death Metal that will groove, chug and blast its way into your collection.

Close off the portals and prepare for extinction.

Infested Entrails – Defiling a Piece of the Deceased (Review)

Infested EntrailsInfested Entrails are from Australia and this is their début album.

Ahh this is just the thing for a lazy, wet, Sunday morning. Brutal, heavy Death Metal with plenty of blasting, rhythm and aggression.

Taking their cues from Cannibal Corpse, Dying Fetus, Severe Torture, Suffocation and Deeds of Flesh; the band rip, tear and carve their way through 33 minutes of grade A Death Metal.

Defiling a Piece of the Deceased features a sound that’s strong enough to bruise. The band have a great production that does their crushing music justice.

Chunky rhythms and bouncing riffs explode out of the speakers as Infested Entrails do their best to flatten everything around them.

This is Death Metal with a lot of energy and boundless passion for the cause.

A thoroughly enjoyable and satisfying blend of brutality and murderous intent. Infested Entrails have created an album that is very good indeed.

A recommended listen. Play loud.

Decimation – Reign of Ungodly Creation (Review)

DecimationDecimation are from Turkey and this is their third album. They play Brutal Death Metal.

Is it wrong that I knew I was going to like this album as soon as I saw the album cover? No? That’s okay then…

This is Brutal Death Metal at its most devastatingly direct. They have a Technical Death Metal side to them but it’s the raw brutality that makes up the lion’s share of their sound. There’s something timeless and eternally gratifying about Death Metal like this. Sometimes I just can’t get enough.

If you think that a mixture of bands like Suffocation, Insision, Defeated Sanity and Nile would make for a good listen then you’d be right and Reign of Ungodly Creation is the album for you.

The songs are tight, condensed balls of ferocity and blasting destruction. They’re not interested in taking prisoners that much is clear. They rip, tear, chug, blast and flail their way through over 37 minutes of prime brutality and long, complicated song titles.

The vocalist is a guttural beast who sounds like he chews on souls for snacks. With a deep growl that’s instantly satisfying his is a voice that’s easy for any Death Metaller to get on board with.

Decimation boast a strong production that sounds like granite has come to life and started crushing cities. There’s something hard and immovable about their sound yet it’s also imbued with life and doesn’t sound stunted or lacking in energy.

Well I have thoroughly enjoyed this album. With lots of heaviness, energetic riffing and blasting mayhem what’s not to like?

Time to get decimated.

Internal Bleeding – Imperium (Review)

Internal BleedingInternal Bleeding are from the US and this is their fifth album. They play Brutal Death Metal.

This is Death Metal that prizes brutality and heaviness above all else. Internal Bleeding were one of the earliest bands who took a so-called Slam approach to Death Metal and this latest album continues this trend.

This means they play heavy Death Metal with lots of chugging and groove mixed in with the blasting; plenty of double bass and mid-paced mosh-friendly chugfests to get you moving around and bouncing like a loon. It’s infectious stuff.

The obvious comparisons would be bands like Dying Fetus and Suffocation, but Internal Bleeding cradle their own inner monster and deliver a collection of songs that really just want to be let loose to rip your face off.

The songs are rabid and nearly unhinged; there’s a very real impression of a band being hungry and wanting to prove themselves. After all it’s been 10 years since their previous album and there’s now a lot more competition in the Brutal Death Metal world than ever before. Based on the evidence here though Internal Bleeding have a made a more than welcome return to the fray and can easily still cut it amongst the newer breed.

Play Imperium at full volume, then quickly get out of its way as it destroys everything nearby.

Recommended.

Pyrexia – Feast of Iniquity (Review)

PyrexiaPyrexia are from the US and play Death Metal. This is their fourth album.

The band play Brutal Death Metal which has a Slam/Hardcore/Groove side to it; Suffocation-style USDM gone the way of Kataklysm.

An acid-etched sound with pounding drums and guitars like stone; the band kick up a maelstrom of dust and leave devastation in their wake.

As the album progresses it reminds me strongly of the aforementioned Katakylsm and their combination of blasting and groovier rffing. Pyrexia employ pretty much the same formula and even the vocalist is similar in style; raw growls that are obviously Death Metal but not quite deep enough to be truly extreme.

The short songs and relatively short nature of the album mean it’s over quickly and overall leaves a positive impression.

If you like a bit of heavy groove with your Death Metal then look up Pyrexia and give them a try.

Day of Doom – The Gates of Hell (Review)

Day of DoomThis is the third album from US Death Metallers Day of Doom.

Day of Doom are purveyors of USDM at its most brutal, yet with a few unexpected twists and turns.

A thick, syrupy sound swamps everything and the band burst at the seams with aggression and sinewy chops. The sound is actually quite unusual in a way as the drums sound warm and distinctly analogue, while the guitars sound much more underground and feral.

Vocally the singer sounds quite animalistic and barks savagery in a ritualised, almost chanted way.

This has quite a few interesting ideas tucked away amidst the brutality – a different vocal here; a dark melody there; some effects here; a lighter passage there. Day of Doom also write some unusual riffs that are definitely not your average Death Metal fare. It helps them stand out from the pack and means the album has more to offer than your standard chug and blast Death Metal, (although there is a nice amount of this as well).

Ever wondered what you’d get if you crossed the essence of Suffocation with the inventive aspects of Morbid Angel? Well it may not sound entirely dissimilar to Day of Doom.

Enjoyable, interesting and atypical; Day of Doom are worth taking seriously.

Question – Doomed Passages (Review)

QuestionQuestion are a Mexican Death Metal band and this is their début album.

The band give their Death Metal a mysterious occult sheen and the music is steeped in it. Rather than a straightforward blastfest or one dimensional brutality Question inject their music with a smattering of Death-like melody and a feeling of grandiose song structure.

There is blasting, of course, and there is brutality, but there is more than just this. Dark melodies and slower sections are rife and the compositions are right up there from the heights of the Classic Death Metal era.

Question channel the Death Metal greats such as Death, Incantation, Hypocrisy, Morbid Angel and Suffocation to deliver an engaging and involving album that doesn’t take the easy or simple route.

The compositions are well written and show a degree of maturity and integrity that most bands lack. Longer songs give the band’s creativity time to shine and allow them to demonstrate their breadth of talent within the Death Metal genre.

The singer has a deep voice that’s absolutely monolithic; like an angry God from ancient days past decreeing loudly from the mountain tops.

This may be a new album but it is stylistically of a time when each song had its own identity and albums were holistically a complete package.

Top marks for Question.