HAEMORRHAGE/IMPALED"Dementia Rex " Split Cd

(Razorback Records)
Release date: 2003
Running time: 36:29

Haemorrhage Review: This long anticipated event has finally happened. These two monsters of gore are the perfect match for a split release and the result is a complete success. First, the album's concept revolving around insanity is a really cool touch, as it's prolonged from one band to another. For their side, Haemorrhage elaborates on the style they forged on "Morgue Sweet Home"... A darker, more complex and more homogenous version of their good old grind-gore style, probably now also more influenced by death metal than ever. Their music is still very much based on speed; The song structures are slightly more intricate now, with especially well thought out guitar riffs. Vocals are always Haemorrhage's trademark mix of slightly gurgled shrieks and lower guttural roars, the drumming is always so driving and with a touch of groove... The sound production is better than ever, with a clear sound, a great balance between all the instruments, and a very nice overall heavy vibe... Musicianship has definitely become so much tighter over the years, I think the band is really on top of their game now! The lyrics are quite sinister, gleefully gory as usual and carrying the "insanity" thread quite well throughout... and strenghtened by some effectively unsettling intros and samples. Oh and I forgot to mention the remarkable cover version of Grave's "Deformed"... Beautiful!

Impaled Review: Impaled is a band I pretty much always omitted to review in these pages (I love em though... I have their cd's and will definitely review em someday, maybe in retrospect but still...) So, their style is almost like a spin-off on Exhumed, (which is basicly old Carcass-style grind-gore allied to old Dismember-style melodic/aggressive death metal), but they equal them in every aspect (perhaps even surpass them in some of them), musically, lyrically, everything else... Songwriting is bloody brilliant, sound production is crisp, Impaled is quite simply one of the finest death metal band I've had the pleasure to hear in years... So, let me see, you've got dual ultra-guttural growls and manic shrieking, dynamic, complex, thrashing & sharp guitar work, tight, pounding and blasting drumming... This is riveting, blazing death metal with an edge; first rate composing, great flow, thick & heavy sound production... Honestly, not one second is boring. Always keeping in mind the "insanity" concept, all the lyrics form some kind of a continuing horror story set in a mental hospital... first you've got medical atrocities/malpractice, followed by mental patients revolting, taking over, slaughtering the medical staff, then various other kinds of madness, mayhem & violence ensuing... Great care is brought to the whole thing, from the excellent intros recorded for the occasion to the lyrics written with minutiae, all according to the grand Carcass tradition, incorporating pathological terms into the stories/lyrics, giving actual names to guitar solis,etc... The festivities end with a very nice cover version of "Helga Lost Her Head", originally by Repulsion. Deranged concept, brilliant imagery and 2 of the most interesting and consistent splatter grindcore/death metal. Needless to say, this cd is absolutely essential.

Haemorrhage Tracks: 1)Intro 2)Slaved to Dismember 4)Psychotic Delirium 5)Deformed (Grave) 6)In the Name of Sanity
Impaled Tracks: 7)Survival of the Sickest 8)Deranged 9)The Patients are Revolting 10)Psycho-Surgery 11)Bedlam 12)Surgikill 13)Helga lost her head

www.impaled.info

www.haemorrhage.ht.st

Label Contact
RAZORBACK RECORDS www.razorbackrecords.com
c/o Billy Nocera
P.O. BOX 321
Farmingville, NY 11738
U.S.A.
Email: WNocera@aol.com

GRUESOME MALADY "Infected with Virulent Seed" Cd

(Bizarre Leprous)
Release date: 2003

Review: This is bizarre and gory grind-death. The sound is quite obscure with thrashing riffs, heavy, somewhat technical at times, but really twisted and occasionally dissonant, and with a lot of high notes; drumming is pounding and blunt, slightly disarticulate; vocals are a sickening mixture of bubbling, watery gurgles... The whole thing has a weird wrapping quality to it, muddied, obscure and repugnant. This is chaotic, insane and sloppy, slightly similar to "Reek of Putrefaction" by Carcass at times... But their sound is pretty different to most everything I've heard before really. Intros are equally weird as the music, a good example being the incest scene from Burial Ground. Gruesome Malady is a one-of-a-kind, deranged, repulsive death-gore band that is sure to make your stomach turn. This band is from India, probably one of the only band in this genre in the country... So support worldwide sickness! Oh and yes I'm the one responsible for the front cover art on this cd!

Tracks: 1)Malodorous Ejaculation 2)Foul Gases Emanating From A Ruptured Anal Ttact 3)Sodomizing The Infirm 4)Ingest The Excrement 5)Twisted Mass of Burnt Decay 6)Lactated On Festering Mammary Pus 7)Infected With Virulent Seed 8)Molesting The Disemboweled 9)Fermented Urine Therapy 10)Embalmed In Fetid Rectal Discharge

http://www.bizarreleprous.cz/

Vikram Bhat
c/o Ullas Refreshments, Public Utility Building, M.G. Road,
Bangalore - 560 001, INDIA
E-mail: slaytan_666@yahoo.com

CATHETER "Preamble To Oblivion" Cd

(Selfmadegod Records - SMG 005)
Release date: 2003
Running time: 50:57

Review: This cd opens with a slow & sludgy introductory song that slowly gets harder... Then the second track burst into all-out, lambasting grindcore, with a decidedly urgent, panic-stricken vibe: pounding beats, fast-as-hell drumming assaults, sudden and disorienting tempo changes, heavy and blistering riffs, some more speed, aggressive hardcore-type shouts often quite low and guttural (although rarely truly growling) mixed with more incisive shriekings reciting very catchy and angry lyrics in a rapid-fire way... This is indeed wild, uncompromising musical violence, but definitely not strictly one-dimensional... There are many influences through their stuff, mostly crust and thrashing hardcore but also some sludge (just a smidge; because otherwise this is music played very very fast). Some pretty good song writing, a lot of refreshing variety and a solid execution with total control of the stuff they're playing. Sound production is not perfect but very heavy and clear and keeping a raw edge at the same time, the guitar sound is slightly saturated but the riffs are grinding and gripping all the same, the drums come through in a fluid way, with a really good and full sound. They're playing a note-worthy cover version of Napalm Death's "Unchallenged Hate" so that should give you a more precise idea of what's influencing them... Personally they also remind me of Cripple Bastards and sometimes maybe Disrupt but their grindcore is pretty diversified so it's hard to pin-point it exactly. This is 18 tracks with an additional 12 bonus tracks of older material, slightly rawer but even more angry-sounding... This band deserves all your attention, they're great!

Tracks: 1)Intro 2)Pushed Back 3)Doom Planet 4)Carry On 5)Unchallenged Hate (by NAPALM DEATH) 6)No More 7)Korn Biscuit 8)Dughnut Man 9)Nothing 10)Slain And Broken 11)Free Will 12)Choices 13)Unimpressed 14)Halo Of Flies (by THE ACCUSED) 15)Conceited 16)803 17)Chad 18)Derailed 19)Hopeless 20)Prophet Of Destruction 21)Sacrifice 22)Columbine 23)Otherwise Unknown 24)Make Up Face 25)Dead 26)Slaughter Of The Innocents (by REPULSION) 27)We Want Your Head (by NAPALM DEATH) 28)live Bluebird Theater 2002

Label Contact: Selfmadegod c/o Karol Pienko / POB 46 / 21500 Biala Podlaska / Poland
tel# (+48) 600 87 82 17
E-mail: karol@selfmadegod.com - karolsmg@o2.pl
Website: http://www.selfmadegod.com

Band Contact: E-mail: badpeoplerecords@attbi.com

NEUROPATHIA "Graveyard Cowboys " Cd

(Selfmadegod Records)
Release date: 2003
Running time: 38:56

Review: First, I think this is a really good album. This is more death metal-influenced than I remember it was on their old demo tape... Their approach seems to be more accessible and varied now but it's still grind, awesome grind. Relentless, very heavy and downtuned, the speed factor is also definitely there, occasionally allied with a nice sense of groove as well. This stuff just comes crashing down, and it absolutely rips! Vocals range from raging, guttural growling to manic shrieking and occasional low pitch-shifted grunting. The guitars are way heavy, with alot of crushing grind riffs but with also more diversified parts, some riffs are practically rock. Drumming is assaultive, fast and pounding; but again quite diverse too... you've got your blast beats, some crusty midtempos, even rock rythms on occasion, very versatile and tightly performed overall... I thought this album was catchy from start to finish, it's not not one hundred percent grind but this is not boring in the least! The sound production is very clear (maybe a little too clean, but I can take it) and just simply powerful.
I could notice many influences through their stuff... Definitely Dead Infection from "A Chapter of Accidents" but also Squash Bowels from their 2 latest albums... That's the polish touch, these guys really make the best grindcore out there. They also made me think of Pungent Stench too for the more rocking death metal-oriented parts, Nasum for the catchy, very fast drumming/overall energy, and finally Haemorrhage for the grinding groove...
The bonus track is not to be missed as it contains a bunch of excellent, raging renditions of songs from Agathocles (x2), Dead Infection ("Maggots in your flesh" & "After Accident"... 2 of my personal Dead Infection favorites), Carcass & Napalm Death... The cover/layout is fairly simple, just a bunch of pictures of the band dressed in suits, looking snappy and hanging out in a cemetary... These guys seem to have a cool sense of humor too, which is a good thing... But maybe they could have done something more for the cover art, anyway the important is really the music and I thought this album was just great. Definitely recommended.

Tracks: 1)Gore Addict 2)Structure of the Undead 3)At Dawn He Comes 4)Bialystok Lawnmower Execution 5)Lumberjack Madness 6)Permition For Necrofile 7)Tonight I'm Going to Die 8)Cemetary Man 9)Cold Skin 10)Bloody Christmass 11)It's a Zombie 12)Uncle Frank 13)The Buzz Is Back 14)Funeral 15)Debil [Return of Idiot] 16)Bad Taste 17)Graveyard Cowboys 18)Scorn of Humanity/ Maggots In Your Flesh - After Accident/ Malignant Defecation/ At Start At Least/ Deceiver

Label Contact: Selfmadegod c/o Karol Pienko / POB 46 / 21500 Biala Podlaska / Poland
tel# (+48) 600 87 82 17
E-mail: karol@selfmadegod.com - karolsmg@o2.pl
Website: http://www.selfmadegod.com

Band Contact: E-mail: neuropathia@vip.interia.pl
Website: www.neuropathia.prv.pl

EMBALMING THEATRE "Sweet Chainsaw Melodies" Cd

(Razorback Records - RR19)
Release date: 2003
Running time: 32:49

Review: Surprising to see this swiss band having their album released by Razorback, I don't think the label ever released a band quite like Embalming Theatre before. Their style is a hybrid of grindcore and death metal not unlike Blood (Germany), retaining the simplicity and fastness of grindcore but delivering songs with more of a death metal-like thick, crushing heaviness. I think clarity in song writing is key here, they keep it simple, straying away from more popular kinds of over-complex death metal which are often boring to me. Vocals are all growls, raging and aggressive, but still preserving a natural feel to them, guitar riffs are very straightforward, catchy, always keeping a clear line... You can also add to that effective, striking and quite fast drumming... Embalming Theatre is utterly enjoyable and a great throwback at old school death metal and grindcore. Other than Blood, bands Embalming Theatre reminds me of are especially Hideous Mangleus (USA) and maybe Inhumate (France)... One of the higher points of this album is also the fantastic cover song the band makes of "Gastric Purulence" composed originally by Exulceration, a long broken up band and old personal favorite of mine... Exulceration also came from Switzerland; By the way, Embalming Theatre didn't forget to use vocal effects for this track, that's what makes it one of the highlight on the cd for me! (Me likes gory vocal effects alot) Yeah, this band Exulceration used to kick serious ass! Alright, back to Embalming Theatre... Lyrics are quite interesting too; the opening song (and title song) is a nice tribute to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The rest is more about real life horrors happening around the globe; it really made me think of what Dead Infection did with their excellent lyrics on "A Chapter of Accidents", something quite horrific, rooted in everyday's life and very dark-humored as well. Also, the artwork is something really original and specific to the band, check out the covers for all their Split Ep releases and you'll see they all have this special kind of artwork... pretty intriguing looking stuff really. A few nice horror intros are thrown in there too, one of them is a tad overlong, but there's only like 3 of them for the whole album so I'm fine with it... The long one is taken from Day of the Dead, the rest I couldn't figure out. The final track is some kind of really weird folk stuff. Overall, very good album, quite original and skilled band... There'll be a LP version of this released through Putrid Filth (Sweden) too!

Tracks: 1)Intro 2)Sweet chainsaw melodies 2)Execution is not a game 3)Exploit of corpses 4)Dive for the dead 4)Brains one hand and one foot in my luggage 5)We ate daddy 6)She ate her flesh 7)A leg is in the mail 8)Shoes made of human skin 9)Intermezzo 10)Someone else in my coffin 11)Chatroom for impalers 12)Dead, stolen, hacked up and raped 13)Buried alive II: breath of cancer 14)Gastric purulence (Exulceration cover) 15)Crash the hearse 16)Topless but mummified 17)Chemical solution for a rotten problem 18)Corpse on board 19)Bags with heads

Band
Website: http://www.embalmingtheatre.ch/

Label Contact
RAZORBACK RECORDS www.razorbackrecords.com
c/o Billy Nocera
P.O. BOX 321
Farmingville, NY 11738
U.S.A.
Email: WNocera@aol.com

GHOUL "Maniaxe" Cd

(Razorback Records - RR18)
Release date: 2003
Running time: 34:44

Review: This new album is quite different from Ghoul's exciting debut "We came for the dead" as the band's thrash metal influence now takes the front seat; Carcass is still the basic influence here (with trademark screamy Jeff Walker-like voice versus guttural roars and gory pitch-shifted growls), but alot of the songs now almost sound like something out of an early Kreator or Anthrax record and many of the best riffs on display here just scream Megadeth! Song writing is pretty damn flawless, more cohesive, complex and intricate than ever, with aggressive guitars, sneaky bass lines, tight and hard-hitting drums; each and every song truly feels like they're composed with loving care for good old 80's musical agression from early thrash metal to early grindcore and death metal. The sound production is quite excellent too, perfectly clear but keeping a tranchant raw vibe. The cheesy horror-tinged lyrics are also alot of fun, very much in the spirit of early Misfits, these lyrics are just an incredibly cool read, especially in a time where good horror/gore lyrics are so rare... plus you gotta love the opening song written about literally taking apart black metal posers! This new album is not always as in-your-face and moshing as Ghoul's first offering but it's still filled with gripping thrashing violence, and tons of genius catchy riffs... this is churning, intense and tight fucking thrashing death metal with an edge, in this case a splatter grind edge. Metal just the way it should sound... Pretty much a breath of fresh air, so my advice is just relax and enjoy this exhilarating album... The cd ends with 2 very unusual songs, first one is "The End", some of kind of spastic surf-rock instrumental song with that special kind of guitar sound, a nice introduction to the big finish which is the "What a Wonderful World" cover, complete with updated lyrics, and this one is a stroke of genius, it kinda clashes with the rest of the album with the music style but the lyrics give it a definitely sinister tone as well, perhaps the most powerful track on the album. I wouldn't be surprised if this album became a cult classic. It truly deserves it! The cover art by Jake of Tales From Uranus completely destroys the cover from the first cd in comparison which I thought was too simplistic, this however is a masterpiece! "We came for the dead" grew to be one of my more-frequently played and replayed Razorback cd, but now "Maniaxe" is here, it's not leaving my cd player!

Tracks: 1)Pleasant Screams/Forbidden Crypts 2)Maggot Hatchery 3)Sewer Chewer 4)Ghoul Hunter 5)Numbskull 6)Boneless 7)Maniaxe 8)Mechanized Death 9)The End? 10)What a Wonderful World

Band
Website: www.razorbackrecords.com/ghoul.htm
E-mail: Digestor@hotmail.com

Label Contact
RAZORBACK RECORDS www.razorbackrecords.com
c/o Billy Nocera
P.O. BOX 321
Farmingville, NY 11738
U.S.A.
Email: WNocera@aol.com

CRIPPLE BASTARDS "Desperately Insensitive" Cd

(Necropolis/Deathvomit Records )
Release date: 2003

Review: Right from the start, this release sound like a new level for the band, and I also know the line-up has changed since the early years, but getting a little further into it, this is actually not that far away from the rest of Cripple Bastards discography. They still play the same, aggressive, furious grind/hardcore, but it all sounds tighter and more coherent than ever, with perhaps more arrangements and a refined sound production. If you don't know them, the Cripple Bastards play a schizophrenic mix of enraged hardcore and violent grindcore. Shouted vocals and typical hardcore/punk riffs are balanced with a speed-crazed approach and uncompromised musical brutality, growled and shrieked vocals, thrashing and grinding riffs... Nervous, turbulent songs with constant changes of pace but always a determined anger. I assume most of the material is new, though I also noticed a few new reprise of older/classic tunes like "Being ripped off" or "I hate her" (probably my 2 favorite Cripple Bastards songs ever)... The lyrics are quite opiniated, and with straightforward messages, but don't expect strictly politically correct topics, they often talk about touchy subject matter and the whole thing really reeks of nihilism and negativity, and well, that's what I love most about them! I was surprised to see the band sign on Necropolis/Deathvomit, that's the last label I thought the band would wanna sign a deal with! But the album itself is a masterful excercise in unrestrained rage and violence all the same. It's a slicker presentation of Cripple Bastards but like I said, they're still totally faithful to their old self, this album is the most cohesive and well-defined release they ever did. The best thing ever to come out of Italy, after Lucio Fulci maybe.

Tracks: 1)Fear in the squats of the dead 2)When immunities fall 3)Cardboard 4)Intravenous love-drip 5)Odio a prima vista 6)Bomb abc no rio 7)The mushroom diarrhoea 8)Rak ne prestaje 9)Get out and bite them 10)Desperately insensitive 11)Me & her in a microcosm of torture 12)Jurisdictions 13)Time of the vultures 14)Idiots think slower 15)I hate her 16)Inside out 17)Being ripped off in 2002 18)Respect or death 19)Partner della convenienza

www.cripple-bastards.com

Release date: 2003

Review: This is a brand new band/project coming from Oregon (land of Engorged, Lord Gore...) The stuff here is quite effective splatter death metal with a pinch of grind and gore in the vein of Impaled/Exhumed/Ghoul. You've got thrashing and slightly melodic riffs reminiscent of early swedish death metal like Dismember & co... You've also got a touch of Carcass, goes without saying... And there's also the additional icky splatter feel of Sanity's Dawn "Mangled in the Meatgrinder" era, with manic mid-high-pitched shrieks and spewy growls. Songs are very straightforward and catchy, always sticking to the essential stuff. Musicianship is pretty damn perfect and all the songs are tightly composed. This demo also ends on a great note, which is a terrific Haemorrhage "Decom-posers" cover song. They're already signed on Razorback so just look out for them there, this should be very interesting!

Tracks: 1)Maggot sermon 2)Awash in gore 3)Splatterhouse 4)Decom-posers (Haemorrhage)

www.razorbackrecords.com

FOETOPSY "Bizarre Gynecology " 7" Ep

(Murder the World - MTW002)
Release date: 2003
Running time: 12 mins

Review: Foetopsy plays some kind of fast and highly dynamic brutal death metal (that slightly reminds me of early Cryptopsy at times, only in a simpler, definitely more basic way) mixed with pissed off raw grind (I'm thinking Dismembered Fetus). This is absolutely speed-crazed, with a sizzling guitar sound, thrashing and heavy, incredibly fast drumming with a lots blasting and double-bass abuse, quite deep, guttural grunting/growling vocals intersected with very abrasive screaming (occasionally extremely high-pitched). Intense and crushing grinding brutal death metal then, tightly performed and with a very nice sound production. Overall, a very cool piece of vinyl, the artwork/layout is also first rate. It's the first release out on the starting label Murder the World, and it's a very good one. Definitely recommended!

Tracks: 1)I knew it had something to do with interest in vaginas 2)Human jelly 3)Umbilical cord bungee baby 4)My balls replaced with eyeballs 5)Sub-valvular aortic stenosis of infant 6)Slightly damp genitalia 7)Feeding on dilapidated stumps 8)Drowned in tepid urea 9)Fluid of the dead 10)Virulent gestation 11)Spilling of blood and urine into the body cavity

Label Contact: Murder the World Productions
P.O. Box 270051 / West Allis, WI 53227 USA
Website: http://www.murdertheworld.net

Band Contact: stenchofcorpse@hotmail.com
Website: www.foetopsy.com

RZEZNIA "Mathematic Grind " Cd

(Selfmadegod Records)
Release date: 2003
Running time: 29:46

Review: This is very explosive and effective grindcore from Poland (the land of pretty damn good grindcore): tight and pounding drumming, aggressive dual roaring & shrieking vocals, straightforward grinding guitar riffs and a very prominent killer bass sound. It all reminds me very much of Agathocles from "Black Clouds Determinate" (which is Agathocles at their best in my opinion) mixed with a good dosage of Squash Bowels. The sound production is fairly good, with instruments all sounding very clear and making the full-on aggression of the band's music all the more optimum. Tracks from 12 to 23 appear to be bonus tracks from 1996 with a slightly darker sound but still very listenable and catchy stuff. Lyrics are all in polish but also translated in english, all in the vein of Agathocles kind of messages. Cover features a slaughtered sheep on the front and a man half devoured by dogs on the back, a pretty sickening package, kind of a Carcass-like message I guess. Anyway, this stuff is great, polish grindcore at its finest!

Tracks: 1)Powiedz 2)Jutro 3)Drugs 4)Rzeznik 5)Manipulacje 6)Slepcy 7)Degenerat 8)Pomysl 9)Transporty smierci 10)Dzisiaj 11)La Mignat 12)Bezosobowosc 13)Zywe Trupy 14)Religijny Przemysl 15)Szklo 16)50 000. 17)Wrak 18)Irena 19)Pionek 20)Zrec 21)Machina Spoleczna 22)Tek-kno t 23)Psychol

Label Contact: Selfmadegod c/o Karol Pienko / POB 46 / 21500 Biala Podlaska / Poland
tel# (+48) 600 87 82 17
E-mail: karol@selfmadegod.com - karolsmg@o2.pl
Website: http://www.selfmadegod.com

Band Contact: E-mail: paju666@poczta.onet.pl - paju666@hotmail.com
Website: www.rzezniagrind.prv.pl