As I listen to this unheralded piece of nasty, morbid, old school death, one word comes to mind: Spewage. That’s the best way to describe what you’ll be getting here. Morbus Chron is a Swedish band playing filthy death metal like Autopsy, Death and Massacre. This breaks the current trend of following in the footsteps of legendary countrymen Entombed, Dismember. It’s still plenty retro but not the typical Swedish retro. Basically, their raucous debut Sleepers in the Rift sounds like something spewing from the underground in the late 80′s and it’s wonderfully repellant, low-fi, non-techy and makes you feel like you need to be disinfected and vaccinated. It’s underproduced, muddy, discordant and vile all the way but somehow manages to be catchy. What more could one ask for? Nothing!

After a creepy lead in, things get crusty immediately with “Coughing in the Coffin.” This had me smiling right away with its shaky, raw guitar tone and the insane, raspy vocals. After a quick start it devolves into a great, ominous doom riff at 1:50 and plods along like that for just the right amount of time before kicking back into sloppy, frenetic thrash speeds again. It’s an instantly likeable old school death gem that will jangle and discombobulate the senses. Followup “Creepy, Creep, Creeping” is more of the same with big thundering drums and its a thing of old-time beauty when vocalist Robba shows his Tom G. Warrior appreciation by adding a heartfelt “Ew!”  ”Bleh!”  ”Blarg!” after every lead break. His vocals sound quite rabid, and you can almost see the foam flying as he screams (especially from 3:15 onward). All the songs have an endearing old school approach and a few really end up being mini-classsics like “Red Hook Horror” (relentlessly hammering, discordant death attack), “The Hallucinating Dead” (outstanding riff patterns that swarm and menace) and “Ways of Torture” (great homage to the first Death album).

The riffing by Edde and Robba is crude and unrefined but catchy and engagingly chaotic. This isn’t the technical fret-fest that can heard on many modern death metal albums but the sloppy, going-off-the-rails quality of much of it  makes it tons of fun. Robba’s vocals are more in line with those of Evil Chuck (Death) than the l0w-register grunters that are so common these days. He screams, wails and wretches but rarely opts for the full on Cookie Monster schtick.

The production might have cost as much as a few cases of cheap beer and an old Slayer CD. It sounds like a rusty garbage can with a demon inside, being thrown down a long steel staircase. It’s a festering death metal soup with the vocals way out in front and drums that sound like they were recorded in a hallway. Echo city baby! I guess that’s the DIY way of approximating the sound of the titular rift. As rough and unpolished as the mix is, I honestly can’t imagine this material being presented any other way. Its soupy death and deserves a soupy mix.

A very pleasant and ferocious blast from the past, Morbus Chron is onto something here. If you love the insanity of Autopsy, this is a going to bring a deranged smile to your mug. Strange how a retro death album can be such a refreshing change from the other retro death albums. AMG would view that as a scorching indictment of the metal scene and the paucity of original ideas. As I’m not in the mood to be cynical or throw down a tirade today (although it’s mostly true), I’ll just suggest you check this out, original or not. Bad ass cover too!

Related posts:

1. Necrovorous – Funeral for the Sane Review
2. Demonical – Death Infernal Review
3. Blood Mortized – Bestial Review

Loyal readers of these Angry Metal Pages are  doubtlessly aware of my affinity for old school Swedish death metal (SDM) akin to the likes of old Entombed, Grave and Dismember (disloyal readers are to be shunned and publicly shamed). Those same readers will also be aware of my love for the retro movement in the genre spearheaded by the likes of Bloodbath, Entrails and Interment. Because the old school SDM style has such a grim, crusty and powerful vibe, it doesn’t bother me in the least when retro bands utilize the sound without much innovation, as long as its done well. Kindly add Necrovorous to the growing list of bands doing it really fucking well with their debut Funeral for the Sane. Hailing from Greece, these gents take the classic early ’90s sound of SDM and scrape in influences from primitive American acts as well as some grindcore. The results are ugly, scabby and about as nasty as shit on scrambled eggs.

As soon as opener “Succubus Dormitory” kicks in (best song title of the year BTW), its 100% straight ahead, no nonsense death with a raw, unrefined sound that really grabbed me and held my attention. There’s a heavy, buzzing guitar tone, really vicious, guttural death vox and some rabid drumming. Probably most similar to the early demos and first album of Entombed, there’s also similarities to Massacre (From Beyond era), early Death (demos and Scream Bloody Gore) and flashes of old Pestilence and Autopsy for the discerning death ear. Its a chaotic, merciless track with a real manic intensity and its pure old school glory all the way. The simple but aggressive riffs are addictive and memorable and man, the vocals are just flat out great. People say death vocals can be boring but these are brutal and wildly intense. The cranium thumping continues with ”The Flesh That Smiles” which is even uglier and utterly loathsome (including cool guitar effects starting at 0:20).  There’s a slimy, phlegmy charm to their style and and I can’t get enough of it. Other standouts include “The Vilest of All Dreams” with its slow, murky doom interwoven with pulverizing thrashy death and the absolute nuclear shit storm of “Mind Lacerations,” with its relentless grind and thick, evil vox (the solo at 4:00 stands out with its eerie horror movie feel). Every song has that old school punch and all are top shelf twisted, writhing death. Not light speed and technical like Hate Eternal, its far more low-fi, low-tech and sludgy. If Hate Eternal is a stealth bomber jet, Necrovorous is a Sherman tank.  It’s going to roll over your body and grind you into red, gooey paste and keep right on going with little flare or technical flourish.

The guitars by A. Devilpig (yes, that’s his real name) and Soul Extractor are simple, raw but surprisingly sticky and memorable. They bash the hell out of you with big doomy power grooves and nasty thrash riffs. Mr. Extractor isn’t big on solos and several of the songs have none at all. When he does deign to solo they tend to be minimalist, creepy and horror filmy (although the opening solo of “Dwellers of My Flesh” is more epic and grandiose). In fact, his solo style is pretty close to the style on the Entrails album. Mr. Devilpig also handles vocals and he’s excellent at sounding evil, anguished and deranged. His performance makes this album a real success and he’s now one of my favorite death vocalists. Not to be outdone, the drumming of Shit Eater (not sure if that’s his real name) is powerful and punishing without relying on blast beats (he seems to consciously avoid them and it doesn’t hurt the intensity one bit). Lastly, the production is raw and murky but good enough to hear every grunt, gurgle.

I love these unexpected surprises by unheralded groups. If you’ve enjoyed bands like Bloodbath or Miasmal and have a softness for grotesque old school death, this must be heard. There isn’t a trace of “modern death metal” here and Steel Druhm is pleased as punch about that. Its filthy, dirty and makes you need a shower after listening. That’s the sign of good death. In closing let me just say, THIS IS SPARTA!!!!! Yeah, I went there.

Related posts:

1. Morbus Chron – Sleepers in the Rift Review
2. Blood Mortized – Bestial Review
3. Disma – Towards the Megalith Review

The late 2000s have seen a resurrection of the old school Swedish death metal that Sweden became so well known for in the underground before the Gothenburg sound took the world by storm. In the last year we’ve had releases by tons of bands waving the flag of true Swedish death metal—and it’s been fun as hell to hear! Crucifyre is another band that is doing something that I would definitely not describe as new, but something I would describe as ultimately ridiculously entertaining and worth a listen if for no other reason than to experience this “all star group’s” vision of the old school.

Crucifyre plays what I would call blackened death metal, but we’re not talking Belphegor here. Instead, I’m referring to old school kinds of black metal like Celtic Frost or Bathory. This stuff has a lot more in common with thrash than with Behemoth, in my opinion. And that’s what closes the loop when it comes to Swedish death metal as well. Crucifyre has undeniable death metal roots in Possessed and Unleashed, as well. Throw those together, with some old school Venomesque lyrics and you get the undeniably enjoyable joy ride that is Infernal Earthly Divine.

Infernal Earthly Divine isn’t all fun and games, though, the music at times, while melodic and energetic, can also be serious and atmospheric. Because of the Satanic themes that the band doesn’t shy away from at all, there are all sorts of references to rituals and sacrifices giving the record a bit of a creepy feeling at times which sits pretty well with me. However, unlike a band like Watain where you really buy into their evil, these guys seem like they’ve just had a few beers and are screaming “Hail Satan!” into a microphone to offend ‘religious feelings’ (as they would say in Poland). Again, think Venom.

Ultimately, though, Infernal Earthly Divine is a very good record. The riffs are memorable, the melodies are great, I love the production—which is very old school—and the songs are hooky in a way that a lot of death metal lacks. Fans of this kind of style will eat this up and be happy for it. And I’m hoping that these guys will hop on a tour with Interment and Entrails and wander through Sweden rockin’ everyone with their old school sentiments. It’s been a while since there’s been a tour like that here.

Related posts:

1. The Fallen Divine – The Binding Cycle Review
2. Hail of Bullets – On Divine Wings Review
3. Demonical – Death Infernal Review

Here we go again. I have in front of me the new album Into the Crypts of Blasphemy by long, LONG time members of the old school Swedish death metal scene, Interment. These guys existed in the late 80’s/early 90’s alongside the forefathers of the genre like Entombed, Grave and Dismember, but other than a few demos and such, this is their first real release. So where are we going again exactly? Bear with me and all will be revealed.

Interment is the perfect band to illustrate the root difference in musical world views between your humble Steelness and my esteemed editor, Angry Metal Guy (AMG for short) and by extension, many of you readers. You see, Interment cannot be called original in any sense whatsoever. They play paint by numbers Swedish death metal and sound a lot like the classic albums from Grave and Entombed. Further, Into the Crypts sounds as if it could have been released in 90’ or 91’ right alongside Left Hand Path or Into the Grave. In fact, musically speaking, there isn’t a trace of anything here the least bit “modern.”  In that sense, I suppose it’s unoriginal and also retro.  Being a longtime fan of the old Swedish death style, as long as the songs are well done and exciting, I will usually like it and am unfazed by the lack of originality.  However, for those that demand at least a modicum of originality in music, as AMG has traditionally done, this album may displease due to it’s admittedly derivative nature, regardless of overall quality. While neither view is necessarily correct, your individual take on Into the Crypts will be colored by where you land on the spectrum between these views.  But, enough of this digression, let’s get on with the dissection.

Into the Crypts gives you eight original tracks (yes, I mean original for them) and a cover of the classic Kreator track “The Pestilence.” The original tracks are all dead ringers for early Grave and Entombed. From the classic Swedish de-tuned guitar tone, to the D-beat style of death gallop and the low-register death gurgles, you know exactly what to expect and there are no surprises. While you have most definitely heard it before, Interment have been around the block and know how to make this style work effectively. The vocals of Johan Jansson are very well done and sound like they were lifted off Left Hand Path. The riffs from Jansson and John Forsberg are pretty well constructed and vary from aggressive to eerie and do the job of propelling the songs along in a deathly fury. Most of the tracks are fast paced thrashers with only sporadic moments of mid paced or slow grinding and all are short, running between three and five minutes each. Every song is worthwhile with no duds and the highlights include “Torn From the Grave, “ “Where Death Will Increase” and my personal favorite “Sacrificial Torment.” The production is raw, simple and sounds right out of 91’ intentionally or not, further entrenching Into the Crypts into the retro mode of old school Swedish death.

In the end, if you love the classic sound and style of Grave and Entombed, then it would seem Into the Crypts is a no-brainer for you and nearly impossible to dislike. If however, you seek something new, original or cutting edge, there is nothing interred here worth examining. This is 100% derivative but well done 1990’s Swedish death, no frills and no nonsense.  While I would caution not to miss out on some quality death due to a lack of innovation, to each their own, take it or leave it.  But remember, they can’t all be Amorphis.

Related posts:

1. Demonical – Death Infernal Review
2. Things You Might Have Missed 2010: Entrails – Tales From the Morgue
3. Grave – Burial Ground Review

In 2008 the underground was taken by storm by a little-known Swedish progressive death metal band called In Mourning that released a tour de force entitled Shrouded Divine. A powerful combination of melodic death metal, Opeth-y style progressive bits and death metal with just a touch of core (trust me, just a touch), they were ranked highly on many year end lists and, frankly, left a bit of an impression on this Angry Metal Guy. See, there is life past Opeth in Swedish progressive metal—something that I had been coming to doubt. In Mourning managed to put out a record that had all of the great heaviness and thickness that one wants in a death metal record, while still managing to keep the haunting progressive parts fresh and interesting. The question is can they keep it up? Is it possible that they’re able to follow up such a lauded record with something even better?

The answer to the previous question is an unequivocal YES! In Mourning has come back for their sophomore release sounding hungrier than ever. With improved production qualities and a new label (that has an eye for talent, obviously, and provided the band with great artwork by the same guy who has done the Katatonia, Opeth, Devin Townsend, and Bloodbath covers—Travis Smith) In Mourning has been able to shape their sound into something even more powerful and cohesive than what was established and distinguished on Shrouded Divine. That is to say: Monolith overshadows the earlier work from this band with its power and writing.

The basics are the same, of course. A blend of Swedish death metal (à la Dark Tranquillity, At The Gates) vocals, some hardcore vocals and some great brutal death metal vocals that round out the sound. There is a lot of downtuned chunk on this album, backed up by an excellent and tight rhythm section that makes the tight, technical bits sound crushingly powerful. At the same time the band is able to slow it down a bit and they use guitar melody and, sometimes, vocal melody to even out the landscapes of this record.

One of the most vastly improved aspects of this record, in my opinion, is the flow that they’re able to get. While Shrouded Divine was good, it sometimes felt like the band was too quick to write choppy pieces that felt unnatural moving into each other. Due to the improved production, and I think just a straight up tighter band, Monolith has hardly any moments that don’t feel natural and flowing. Instead, the songs are often deceptively long despite the fact that they don’t feel that way at all—clocking in at six or seven minutes when you think it’s only been 3 or 4—and the transitions are vastly improved. Tracks like “The Poet and the Painter of Souls” exhibit the smart composition that the band now exhibits, moving seamlessly between parts and never really following into bad patterns. The same is also very much true of “With You Came Silence.”

It’s hard for me to say this, as it’s the first record I’ve reviewed for 2010, but this album has the makings of a record of the year. It has everything that fans of doom, melodic death metal, metalcore and well, frankly, good heavy metal in general should look for in bands: technical proficiency, excellent writing, balanced production and cohesiveness. Monolith may well tower over 2010 as one of the best… Not to mention that In Mourning is definitely working its way into the echelons of amazing Swedish metal bands in my opinion. It has been a while since a new band from Sweden really blew me away, but In Mourning has all the makings of one of the greats.

Related posts:

1. In Mourning Streaming new Album Online
2. Barren Earth – Curse of the Red River Review
3. Arise – The Reckoning Review