Death Metal Tuesday - The Dead Shall Inherit (1991)

BAPHOMET - THE DEAD SHALL INHERIT (1991)

Cannibal Corpse isn't the only death metal band out of Buffalo, New York. Baphomet played some catchy death metal before changing their name to Banished in 1992, and releasing one album. The Dead Shall Inherit is their only album as Baphomet, and it's an infectious, if rather basic, death metal offering. 

The immediate comparison would be Eaten Back to Life - era Cannibal Corpse. The song structures are simple, and the riffs are instantly accessible. Baphomet is perhaps a bit more precise in their attack than Cannibal was on their debut. The production is a bit thin, the guitars have very little bite, and the kick drum is too loud. The vocals are nice and guttural, bringing to mind early Suffocation. 

The Dead Shall Inherit is a rather obscure release, but it's not because it's bad, it's probably a product of over-saturation in 1991. This was an album that sounded very much like everything else, so it didn't get the attention it probably deserved. The Suffering, Vile Reminiscence, and Boiled in Blood are all well written, hook-driven, and memorable tracks. Valley of the Dead is the album favorite for me - it has an awesome mid-tempo groove and a really cool beginning. 

Baphomet is one of those bands that many will miss, simply because they only had one release, and it got buried with lesser acts that helped saturate the market and eventually kill the original death metal scene. Over twenty years later, The Dead Shall Inherit probably deserves a little love from genre fans. It gets a 3 out of 5. 

Death Metal Tuesday - Repulsive Conception (1995)

 BROKEN HOPE - REPULSIVE CONCEPTION (1995)

Let's head back to the states for Chicago's Broken Hope and their 3rd full length, Repulsive Conception. Broken Hope play east-coast style death metal: down-tuned guitars, guttural vocals, and intricate song structure. Starting with an almost gore-grind sound on their debut, they sound almost refined on their 1995 album.

Joe Ptacek is an awesome growler - very deep and ghoulish sounding, such a classic voice. Musically they are reminiscent of Butchered at Birth - era Cannibal Corpse. Low, chromatic, with plenty of blastbeats. The production is deep and meaty without being muddy. There is enough rawness so as not to feel over-produced, but you can still hear everything that is going on, even during the blasts.

Chewed to Stubs, Pit Bull Grin, and Engorged with Impiety are all excellent old school death metal tracks. There are a couple of throwaway instrumentals, and some filler but for the most part, the album is solid. Broken Hope were an uncompromising act - always staying true to their death metal roots and never diluting their sound. The band's previous album, The Bowels of Repugnance probably has the stronger songs on it, but I find myself turning to Repulsive Conception more often, and I think it's because of the vocal performance, it's just awesome. Oh, and the Twisted Sister cover? Brilliant. This gets a 3.5 out of 5.

Death Metal Tuesday - Nespithe (1993)

DEMILICH - NESPITHE (1993)

As a contrast to last week's review, we'll look at another Finnish band, the incredibly weird Demilich. Their one and only legitimate release is the overly progressive Nespithe, a collection of atonal, rhythmically complex death metal tunes guaranteed to clear rooms of people. If you want people to go home at the end of a party, just blast Nespithe for about 10 minutes and it should do the trick.

That's not to say Demilich are bad, they just have a very narrow audience. Broken rhythms and chromatic riffs are the norm. There are also very few chords on the guitars, almost exclusively single note riffs. Also, I have a theory that they don't play the same note twice in succession. I haven't proven this, but it certainly sounds like I'm right.

I've avoided discussing the vocals until now. If there were a contest for the vocalist who sounds the most like he's belching, Antti Boman would be the clear winner. There's no better explanation, he sounds like "burp, burp, burp." This makes it difficult for many a death metal fan to get into Demilich, but with an open mind, it's actually kind of cool - albeit rather limiting.

Demilich are a death metal band without comparison. It may even be a rather liberal move to put them in the genre, because their musical approach is so technical and progressive. It's not your standard death metal by any means, but they were definitely part of the movement. Nespithe can be fun, but in all honesty, I have a hard time making it through the whole album. I gotta give it a 2 out of 5. Burp. 

Death Metal Tuesday - Shadows of the Past

SENTENCED - SHADOWS OF THE PAST (1991)

By 1995, Finland's Sentenced were playing cheesy goth-metal atrocities - tapping into a new commercially lucrative subgenre of metal. Their first two albums were of a different sort - their second album was a progressive death metal anomaly and their debut, Shadows of the Past (released in the states with 3 bonus demo tracks), is pure Nordic death metal. 

Sentenced may instantly sound inline with their Swedish counterparts, but repeated listens will reveal a more nuanced and melodious approach - incorporating elements of what would soon be called the Gothenburg sound in Sweden, the precursor to modern melodic death metal, ala In Flames and Children of Bodom. Miike Tenkula's vocals are the strongest Swedish connection, but musically they bare some similarities to early Death and England's Paradise Lost. Based on their musical trajectory through the years, Sentenced we're clearly a band trying to find their sound during this time period, but the end product does not come off as aimless or confused. This is possibly one of the best Nordic death metal albums from this time period. It is both brutal and beautiful, melodious and aggressive. It is the perfect blend of several key influences. The guitar breakdown in the middle of In Memoriam (a bonus track) sums it up perfectly - morbid, sorrowful, and soulful. 

Although Sentenced were undoubtedly unaware of the strength of their debut, or the impact it would have years later, it is fitting that they changed course after its release. They could never have topped it. Shadows of the Past bleeds sweet death nostalgia for me, and it is one of my favorites. I'm giving it 5 out of 5. 

Death Metal Tuesday - You'll Never See... (1992)

GRAVE - YOU'LL NEVER SEE... 1992

Grave are from the initial batch of Swedish death metal acts, forming in the late 80's and hitting the states in 1990-91. You'll Never See... is their second album, following up the much revered Into the Grave. What we have here is a solid and rather typical-sounding Swedish death album with that notorious "Sunlight Studios" sound, pioneered by Entombed and Dismember. That means buzz-saw guitars, thudding drums, and deep guttural vocals. Anybody who was anybody in Sweden sounded like this from 90-92. Unfortunately, that makes the Swedish sound a bit derivative by nature since it was recorded in the same studio, and engineered by the same guy (Tomas Skogsberg).

Content-wise, You'll Never See... takes very few risks and makes few changes from the debut. It's notably less muddy - the drum mix is clean and clear, (though a bit heavy on the snare for my tastes), the tempo is still nicely cranked up, and the songs are chock full of changes, break-downs, and monster riffs. Sandstrom has a good Cookie-Monster growl, nice and guttural, and a little goofy (but that's usually a good thing).

The title track has an epic hook over a medium pogo beat that just begs for a circle pit - it is fantastic, and probably the best moment of the album. Grief, Obsessed, and Severing Flesh are all like-minded, competent Swedish death metal rockers. This is a solid, enjoyable album that will appeal to fans of the early work from the aforementioned Entombed and Dismember. Grave would continue to release albums, evolving to that disappointing “Rot & Roll” crap along with Entombed. You’ll Never See... Is a straight-forward, rather redundant release, but genre fans should dig it. It’s worth 3 out of 5.

Death Metal Tuesday - From Beyond (1991)

MASSACRE - FROM BEYOND 1991

I'm posting this Monday night, so please forgive me. Florida's Massacre are a super-group of sorts, comprised of the discarded members of genre front runner, Death. 1991's From Beyond is really their only proper full length release, and it smacks of "me too." This is a by-the-numbers death metal effort with a polished production and painfully predictable song structure.

While some of these tracks are rockin' and competent enough, it feels somewhat soulless. Kam Lee sounds remarkably similar to Napalm Death's Barney Greenway (particularly on Harmony Corruption) on the vocals. I mean, it's downright eerie how much they sound alike. Rick Rozz reprises his guitar tricks used so heavily on Death's Leprosy album, sounding like a child's laser gun toy on most of his leads. Andrews does a competent job behind the kit, but his drumming is rather vanilla and the drum mix is far too clinical sounding for my tastes. In fact, the production is probably the main issue I have with this album - it simply doesn't fit, it's too clean.

Dawn of Eternity is a classic death metal tune, complete with the keyboard intro. It's probably the strongest track on the album, which is unfortunate, because it's the first track. The title track has some good moments, as does the classic sounding Corpse Grinder - complete with shout-along chorus. If they were to go back and dirty up the mix a little bit, I may like this sucker a bit more. As it stands, the snare is too loud, the guitar is paper-thin, and I'm not sure the bass player showed up to the recording.

I know there are genre fans who swear by this album. I've even seen it on top 10 lists. I'm sure there are a litany of reasons why I should like more than I do, but I remain unconvinced and give it a 2 out of 5.

Death Metal Tuesday - Onward to Golgotha (1992)

 Incantation - Onward to Golgotha (1992)

If Rap had their East Coast versus West Coast battle, then death metal has its East versus Florida battle. Pennsylvania's Incantation sling a style of death metal that falls right in line with their New York and Massachusetts peers (for example, Immolation and Suffocation). Their debut, Onward to Golgotha, is held in very high regard among death metal fans. This is the first band covered here where the vocalist sounds like a bonafide monster. Forget growling, Craig Pillard gets in touch with his inner-demon on this album. He is such a part of this band's sound, that his departure in 1994 would all but kill it for me.

Along with the demon vocals, Incantation play break-neck, blastbeat-driven death metal, tuned-down and muddy as hell. This album is about brutality and atmosphere more than it is about riffs. That's not to say there aren't some good hooks here, it's just not the main objective. There are plenty of slow, sludgy moments as well - tempo changes, broken time signatures, and through-composed tunes. Incantation is not about verse-chorus-verse, each song is a journey through some level of hell. Speaking of hell, Incantation are plenty satanic; Rotting Spiritual Embodiment, Christening the Afterbirth, Unholy Massacre... You get the point (I suppose the name of the album is a pretty big clue too). It's all rather juvenile, but if you take the message too seriously, then there is probably something wrong with you. The compositional style may be off putting to the uninitiated, in that one song is not instantly distinct from another. Every track has multiple tempo changes, key shifts, and multiple themes.

This is a musically dense excursion that may chase off fans of more accessible material. Onward to Golgotha is a challenge, but that is what draws me back to this genre over and over again. Extreme metal needs to be challenging, and hell, it even needs to chase some people away once in awhile. Onward to Golgotha deserves its "classic" status, it is a punishing outing of vicious and brutal American death metal. It earns 4 out of 5 Skullies.