Something you might not know about me is that I struggle with anger issues. While that’s perfect for my career with Angry Metal Guy for all kinds of reasons, it quickly becomes problematic in meatspace when a majority of my negative emotions—and even a few positive ones—express themselves as anger instead. Therapy helped me build new bridges to a healthier state of emotional regulation, but that well-worn beeline to rage still gets the better of me some days. On those days, it’s good to have something tangible on hand that I can use to funnel my dysregulated brain into. Enter Swedish death/crust collective Crawl’s sophomore fury party, Altars of Disgust.
Crawl, to put it simply, sounds pissed off. Not one to fuck with, Crawl’s sound hearkens to those HM-2 legends we all know very well (Entombed, Dismember), but filtered through the punky swagger and unlimited ire of acts like Goregäng and Vomitheist. Knowing all three of those things—HM-2 pedals, Goregäng, and Vomitheist—found a warm bed in the death mansion that is the prolific Transcending Obscurity Records, most of our readership automatically know what to expect from Altars of Disgust. For those that don’t, expect rabid Swedeath riffs touched by the bloodied hands of punk, grind, and hardcore; throat-shredding retches; two (2) metric tonnes of d-beats for every one (1) metric tonne of blasts; and enough buzzsaws to level the Amazon rainforest in roughly five minutes.
Opener “Undead Crypts” launches the record in probably the most stereotypical Swedeath manner imaginable—about seven seconds of highly distorted feedback, a couple of big tom/snare hits, and a hard launch into a high-paced tear of unrestrained, extremely satisfying WIOLENCE. This is Crawl’s modus operandi, and they nail it back to front. Throughout the totally ripped thirty-minute runtime, an incalculable number of riffs assault the senses, snapping between groove (“Until they Crawl”), stomp (“Ethereal Depths,” “Into Sordid Rifts”), and weaponized speed (“Knives,” “Enslaved in Filth”). More enlivened than ever, Crawl’s expressive drumming in particular proves to be the star of the show as it brings momentum and palpable energy to each and every track (especially “Undead Crypts,” “Enslaved in Filth,” and “Into Sordid Rifts”). On the songwriting front, Altar of Disgust features a very cool undercurrent of musical dynamism that only bloomed after my third listen. Specifically, from the start of “Undead Crypts,” Altar of Disgust embodies HM-2 death to a tee, yet slowly incorporates more and more punk and hardcore twists as they reach the midpoint (“Curse of the Morbid,” “Ethereal Depths,” “Enslaved in Filth”). From there, the album takes an unexpected turn towards the blackened to pitch the record unceremoniously into the void (“Into Sordid Rifts,” “Buried Lust”). This strategy helps Altar of Disgust feel unified as a whole, but also potentially leaves Crawl with a lot of room to grow and further develop their sound.
Unfortunately, that’s as far as it goes for Crawl when it comes to uniqueness or distinction within a massively overcrowded field. Save for big album highlights like “Undead Crypts,” “Knives,” “Ethereal Depths,” “Enslaved in Filth,” and “Into Sordid Rifts,” most songs on Altar of Disgust are interchangeable inside their respective quadrants. Extreme fun though this record may be, and it is extremely fun, both Goregäng and Vomitheist—to restrict comparisons to artists I myself covered—better curated for themselves personalities which shined on their own. Crawl, on the other hand, haven’t fully developed a majority number of their riffs and songwriting ideas past what fans of this genre heard over the past thirty-odd years (“Throne of Molten Bones,” “Vision of Burning Apparitions”). Furthermore, the inclusion of a sample-driven interlude (“Where No Light Escapes”), which contributes very little to this raucous journey, shows Crawl falling victim to typical metalverse pitfalls as well. More clever storytelling and songwriting innovations going forward would make for an evolved, but still vicious, future Crawl.
Critiques aside, Altar of Disgust remains a hugely entertaining, crusty roll in the filth. Sonically satisfying to no end and ridiculously headbangable, Crawl’s sophomore effort is no slump. It rocks, hard. But it won’t change the minds of modern HM-2 dissidents in the same way I’ve seen some do over the last few years. In short, if you dig buzzy, crusty death metal—or if you’re just here for a good time, not a long time—you’re going to get a big kick out of this. Otherwise, Give in to Your Anger™ another way.
Rating: Good!
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Transcending Obscurity Records
Websites: facebook.com/CRAWLSWE | crawlofficial.bandcamp.com
Releases Worldwide: May 3rd, 2024
