Wormrot I Adore (Wormrot / I Abhor, 2010)

The day has finally dawned, I have my much awaited copy of Wormrot/I Abhore, listened to it God knows how many times, and finally decided to spread the word of our Lord and share its Glory!
Introductions with Wormrot should not be needed, but if you so happen to  have been in a coma between late 2009 and now then all you need to know is that these Singapore trio release kick ass more often than a falsehood leaves a politicians mouth. As for the other band present, I Abhor  are a hell bent quintet based in L.A with a grim dystopian approach to some fast paced Grind, and should not be neglected in the shadow of Wormrot's awe.

I Abhor start off with a few rogue shacky notes struck out, then accompanied by a simple generic cymbal beat, creating an aura of suspense, then a short lived warping guitar work drags us into the realm of blast beats and shifting screams of anger and despair.  Throughout their tracks the drum work has a eminent echo from  constant snare bashing, and at first glance may sound messy and repetitive, however you should notice that drumming is highly above standard and is the main driving force, behind the songs. The guitars are very much only used to fill space, and when they are used independently nothing exceptional is performed, but nothing terrible either. Vocals are gruff, and compliment the angry raw drumming perfectly , expect nothing but pure energetic low tuned screaming. One can easily identify Assück as being the overall feel the band are trying to achieve, and although it is certainly a good route to go down, I have my own suggestions for the band. 

The band certainly have all the elements that makes them a fantastic band, however I think the way they play out these elements needs adjusting, instead of going the Assück route, I recommend making the drumming more clear and the vocals a bit louder as it was too often drowned out in the snare blasting,and if these where to be achieved the band will never be second rate to Assück, but have their own sound and feel, alongside their already impressive ability.

This is purely and simply 100% cacophonous defenestrative Grindcore. It's rowdy and upbeat nature is only superseded by its addictive temperament which will get you hooked faster than chocolate flavoured crystal meth. They even toy with their audience having the first 13 seconds of their track a tribute of counting to the number 12 before Arif's vocals explode your eardrum in a 3 second blast, powerful enough to give Gulf War Syndrome even to the most resilient of men. These guys are just relentless, at no point do they waiver or pull out a short straw on their instrumental lashing, we have 8 grinding tracks of biblical proportions. "Critical Human Stupidity" is the second track and by far my favourite, with its energetic virulence  one can not find a fault in such a wild tune.
These guys stick a middle finger to the concept of one album wonders, and bash out nothing but Grindcore of the highest order, everything seems to be there, amazing guitar work? check, blast beats galore? check, ear piercing vocals? check, crystal clear sound quality? check, elements all thrown together through a black hole? check, what more could one ask for? A bassist I hear you say? Sorry I can't quite hear that over the crushing guitar work of Fit. The overall Abuse formula has been fine tuned to near perfection, we have a more fluid rhythmic structure in place, but at the other end of the table these guys have brought a more overall Insect Warfare stranglehold to their already mind-blowing songs, and they just make it work as if there was no jump from one to the other, not even a shudder. There is only one way to play this and that's with the repeat button on, volume maxed out and a health hazard warning outside your front door, any other way and its wrong.
Lastly, all I have to say is Wormrot LEAD US ONWARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wormrot   -   I Abhore

Read more >>

Putrefactive Pain (Neuropathia vs Putrescence, 2010)

 We all love covers among some of the classics in our respective genre, but rarely if ever do we actually come across a cover which is actually preferable to some of the most fundamental defining building blocks of Grindcore, and much to my surprise I have come across a  a cover of Scum which I greatly prefer to the original, and furthermore a cover of Dead Shall Rise which I find almost en par with the original. Now I love N.D and I love Terrorizer, and for me to make such a statement is not merely a sign of rampant fanboyism , but a well grounded statement, read further to explore.

Neuropathia are perhaps the most famous of the Polish extreme metal acts, and such a reputation is anchored in a fist full of releases scattered amongst their veteran career. Across their 9 tracks they manage to ram in 3 cover songs, Nasum - Time to Act, Napalm Death -Scum, Carcass - Manifestation of Verrucose Urethra, these covers as to be expected are "Neuropathiasised" and that certainly ain't a bad thing. We all remember Scum  with its notoriously dirty down tuned fuzzy guitar work, gritty bass lines and echoey drums well Neuropathia scrap that and play a clean cut fresh approach to it, and they effectuate this fantastically well. Among early grind fans, this might not appeal given the nostalgic appeal has been severed, however certainly amongst  those who Grindcore has come into being second hand, then I am sure you will rest on my side of the camp and prefer the cover. The other two covers are not quite as good as the original, the Carcass cover lacking the outright heavy fear factor which Carcass brought into the genre, and the Nasum cover lacking the general Nasum feel, although both attempts are commendable endeavors and worthy of a listen in their own right.
The remaining six songs are straight up standard recent Neuropathia with their death metal that occasionally dances into the realm of Grindcore, it has an upbeat rythmic stance to it, which although does not create a seriously heavy sound which we are accustomed to, it does have a nice catchy groove to it however. Certainly a recommendation for those seeking something fresh in Grindcore.

 Putrescence spawn from Canada, and romp about a sui generis blend of many genres, from straight up Grindcore, Death metal, Deathgrind and even on occasion tangoing with the Gore. The lack of genre consistency is what produces the delightful and unique sound which has made Putrescence's name, they are pretty much a band that will please any lover of any extreme metal genre. Racking up a total of 10 minutes across 5 vile tracks, we see no hint of technicallity, nor that of any insane guitar work or drum work, but merely a carcass of simple and catchy uncomplex extreme metal, yet somehow they manage to pull it off to create a very decent 10 minutes.
Sadly as per usual I shall commit myself to the typical moan; that the song titles are half-witted attempts at creativity however, the musical content behind the poorly strung names is of good character, and easily redeems such an injustice. They also do an amazing cover of Terrorizer's  Dead Shall Rise, from start to end they do not fail to give the old grinding classic a nice makeover, although being a fantastic cover, it does not quite reach the audio attack ecstasy of the original, but I am yet to meet a band who can.

 If you like something new to feast your senses on, and/or if you want to hear some fantastic covers of some Grindcore's best tracks ever or you just want a mishmash of death metal- grindcore - Goregrind, if any of these satisfy you, then get your ass in gear and get yourself a copy asap.

Sorrry about shit sound quality

Putrescence@Myspace

Neuropathia@Myspace

ScrotumJus@Myspace 

 

Read more >>