1.Mute Telepath 2.Embrace The Mutilation 3.Hematolagnia
4.Caustic Mind Condition 5.Prosthetic Collective 6.Parasitic Symbiosis
Technical, brutal and frenzied death metal greets your unsuspecting ears when the play button is pressed, a whirlwind of precisely executed extreme metal flying from the speakers. It’s a great start to opener ‘Mute Telepath’, however things take an altogether more melodic approach half way through the track. Instruments are stripped down to a minimum to create a very strange atmosphere, the song almost ‘stalling’ due to the change in pace. However, the pace then returns to the track, the frenzied riffing and blast beat heavy drumming brings the track back to life, ending it on a high. ‘Embrace The Mutilation’ begins with an old school feel, but then sets a blistering pace, technical in its structure, guitar riffs sweeping from one to the other with maximum effect. Reminiscent of Malevolent Creation in places, there’s an American death metal influence on show. For all the bands technical prowess and ability, there’s also an undercurrent of old school death metal, the slower passages especially reminiscent of death metal ‘from back in the day’, the sound being stripped bare with guitars and drums being played simply, but effectively.
‘Hematolagnia’ offers the listener something different, more old school riffing opens this track up, but then a black metal influence shows through and the melodic edge to the bands sound again on show. The mix of old school, melodic death metal and BM gives this track a great deal of variety, being a very well played and really well written song. ‘Caustic Mind Condition’ again reminds us that Diathesis aren’t a one trick pony and have a great deal of variety to their song writing. With a lot of technical death metal riffs on show here, the blasting drums are the perfect backing to guitars, giving the track an almost Altar-esque (Holland) sound. The band members are obviously accomplished musicians which really shows through. Vocally, this disc is first class, remaining guttural throughout and backed sparsely by screamed vocals which keeps things interesting.
Closing this e.p. is ‘Parasitic Symbiosis’, very atmospheric, acoustic guitars almost Latin in their sound which are drenched in echo and backed up by simple drum work. This track see’s the band at their most brutal, the drumming a blur of frenzied and extreme blast beats, guitars heavy as hell and again the American Death metal style is mixed with Swedish style riffing to create on hell of a sound and a fitting finale to this excellent e.p. The ‘overly loud’ guitar solo towards the end of the song was unnecessary, feeling slightly out of place amongst all the brutality, but that’s a minor negative point in an e.p. full of positives. Diathesis have the mix of brutality and melody just right, the brutality the overriding element with the melody taking a back seat, used sparingly but to great effect when needed. Technical death metal with some melody to keep things interesting, well recommended
An unholy blackened thrash assault blasts forth straight from the pits the hell, with the emphasis being placed heavily on thrash. ‘All Conquering Death’ opens this demo up and introduces us to Cultfinder’s racket. There’s a simplicity to the song structure which is endearing to the sound and the rawness of the music. Black metal style vocals layered with reverb and echo creates the ‘blackened’ element to the band’s sound, spewing messages of Beer and Satan (great combination!!). The band describe themselves as black metal, but not really in the ‘traditional’ sense of the term, the guitar riffs taking their influence heavily from thrash, but a very filthy and ugly thrash sound. Dare I say that some of the riffs in this opening track might be raw, filthy and rotten, but are also very ‘catchy’ and very well written! Satan will be pleased with his young disciples \m/
‘The Devil’s Whore’ opens up unusually, almost as if none of the band members knew when the song was starting, but if feels right, well planned out, adding to the underground, raw and “fuck you” attitude the band creates. Tempos are mixed, ranging from a filth laden crawl to all out unholy blast, the majority of the songs being in the ‘mid-paced’ bracket, the drumming setting the pace with simple, but effective drum beats. ‘The Scourging Angel’ travels the same well-worn path being very similar to the previous track. Try to imagine a less brutal, but a lot thrashier Black Witchery or Blasphemy and you won’t be far off the mark getting to grips with their sound. The production is horrible, but in a really good way. The guitars are filthy; the bass grinds the hell out of every riff, rumbling horribly along with the percussive horrors that are the drums. The drums are obviously being battered to bits, but are barely audible under the nastiness of the guitars and bass and this is quite clearly intentional and not an error in the studio when mixing this monstrosity. ‘Witching Curse’ closes this demo and doesn’t offer us anything different than we’ve already witnessed in the three previous tracks, which isn’t really a band thing as Cultfinder have created a really great sound, taking heavily from the old school underground black metal classics and adding their own take on it. We’re even treated to a big, heavy metal finish to the last track, fitting given the bands old school and thrash influences. It’s a nasty Satan worshipping, beer drinking black thrash assault. It’s simple, to the point and it’s definitely worth your attention.
Ugly, dirty old school death metal is where this self released demo is placing itself in amongst the multitude of sub-genres that have been created under the ‘Extreme Metal’ tag. The first thing that grabs the attention is the overall heaviness of the songs, opener ‘Self Inflicted Wounds’ rumbles along in a cess-pit of nastiness, the guitars very heavy and old school in their nature, the composition of the riffs bringing back memories of the early 90’s. It’s all very slow to mid-paced which suits the song perfectly, no need to blast here, the heaviness of the riffs makes up for the lack of blast! ‘D.U.S.T’ follows and is very similar to the previous track, the pace increased slightly in places to add some variety to the track. Variety is also added by differing vocals, guttural roars used alongside a more screamed main vocal, the guttural vocals drenched in reverb and echo which adds the old school feel. Final track ‘Horror Horror’ again sees the pace being upped slightly but then returning to the familiar mid-paced crawl. The ending to this track is very catchy, a definite ‘toe-tapper’ and just as the song is gathering pace and becoming appealing, it ends, which is a shame.
Overall there’s a hint of groove to the death metal riffs, reminiscent of Baphomet and slower Incantation in places. That’s basically what gives this demo its old school appeal, the death metal riffing being very catchy in places, simple guitar riffs and patterns backed up by simple, to the point drumming both used to create a real air of horror. Production wise, the guitars couldn’t be better, heavy as fuck and raw, just the way they should be on a release like this. On the down side, the drum production is awful. I’m not sure if this was the aim of the band, to have the drums sounding like they were recorded in the garage next door. The kick drums especially bad, barely audible through all the other instruments and vocals. A shame, but not too important as this is only a demo and in it’s (old school) nature shouldn't have a crystal clear production anyway. This demo will appeal to a lot of people and might even bring back a few memories for the older extreme metal fans listening to it (me included!). Admitedly, it's not going to set the world on fire, but it is a good solid death metal release which showcases a band who were hoping to gain some attention from it, before they sadly called it a day. Disappointing news, as their next release would probably have been a belter! Worth your time.
1.Meet Me By The Fountain 2.Buy Her Flowers 3.Treat Your Woman Right
4.Spooning Song 5.Never Go Dutch 6.Make Sweet Music 7.Ice Cream Song (Two Straws)
8.Be My Valentine 9.Meet Your Mum 10.Courting Song 11.Roses Are Red
12.We All Need Someone
'Contraception' is the debut album from Glasgow based grinders Wheelchair Wheelchair Wheelchair Wheelchair. Searing crazily from the outset, opening track ‘Meet Me By The Fountain’ is a potent and violent affair, the guitars blasting out crazed riffing with a really raw and bass heavy tone. There’s a dirtiness to the guitars which gives them a sludge feel and instantly reminded me of Soilent Green. And on that Soilent Green theme, some of the riffs have that Southern Rock / Grind feel to them, making use of the groove which the Southern Rock influence brings with it. ‘Buy Her Flowers’ again utilises the Southern Rock / Grind element brilliantly, mixing the two perfectly and with added shouting ‘sing-along’ vocals makes for an interesting sound. ‘Treat Your Woman Right’ begins with some almost thrash like vocals which actually reminded me of Nuclear Assault. These vocals making way for the main screamed vocals which are placed over some really frantic guitar work. ‘Spooning Song’ carries the theme of the previous tracks, making the most of blast beats and frenzied riffing. However, there’s some slight change in direction with the guitars and the vocals, the shouted, sing-along vocal sections are re-introduced, working well when layered with the harsh, screamed vocals. A heavy dose of groove is also introduced through the lead guitar work, the main riff being instantly memorable and very catchy. The pace slowed to a crawl to allow the groove to really open the song up and add some variety to proceedings.
‘Make Sweet Music’ see’s the band at their most brutal, insane blast beats over some really crazy vocals all supported by ever grinding, ever groovy riff work. The shorter tracks, ‘Spooning Song’, ‘Ice Cream Soda’ and ‘Courting Song’ all come in at around the 35 second mark and are all pure grind, setting a blistering pace for their short time spans. The end section to ‘Courting Song’ actually has a hint of Macabre to it in the way the vocals are arranged and delivered. These guys wouldn’t look out of place of the Relapse Records roster alongside the likes of Brutal Truth, Soilent Green, Hemdale and Benumb when Relapse was signing bands of that nature. They have ‘that feel’ about them; that ‘Relapse’ feel. Maybe it’s because there is a big dose of ‘Soilent Green’ to their sound (Sewn Mouth Secrets-era). This release is definitely something unique to the UK, a grinding; grooving boiling pot of influences that when mixed, works perfectly and is a must for Southern Rock / Grind fans, highly recommended.
One man bands can often be overlooked, scorned for not being a ‘full' band, sometimes shunned by extreme metal fans because they lack appeal. If this is your stand point then ignore at your peril as you are missing out on some of the most extreme metal that the UK currently has to offer. There’s no real rule book on who should be creating extreme metal, nothing to say that a band should consist of more than one member. Extreme metal as one genre has just come accept that a band is four or five musicians creating music, this becoming the accepted and sometimes preferred norm.
Sammy Urwin~Regurgitate Life
However, lurking in the UK underground are a group of dedicated individuals, talented solo artists who are smashing the system, breaking free from the perceived norm and forming bands with just a single member. Crafting and creating some very professional, brutal and extreme metal, easily able to hold their own amongst the plethora of current underground bands within these shores. There tends to be a perception that the one man bands are bedroom projects, never seeing the light of day or being showcased through the gig scene. This being yet another misconception, many of these individuals are now experienced live artists, performing at some of the UK’s premier festival events. It seems this small army of one man killing machines are beginning to lay waste to the UK live scene and are giving ‘full’ bands a run for their money. The UKEM blog has recently highlighted a few of these bands, so for those who missed out first time round, we are providing a guide to some of these extreme individuals.
~ICONIC DESTRUCTION~
First up is London based ICONIC DESTRUCTION, the man behind this black metal solo project being Zac Broughton (also vocalist in brutal death metallers OBLIVIONIZED). Zac is single handedly producing some very tortured, haunting and misanthropic black metal. There is a suffocating atmosphere being created on ‘Godstained Perfection’ (Malignant Manifestation Productions 2011), a real feeling of desperation and despair with a very bleak outlook on life. Suicidal black metal, raw but very catchy, original and never repetitive…pure black metal hell!
Now based in The Netherlands, but a native to the UK is Pete Watkinson, the hell raiser behind ABOMNIUM. Another black metal offering but with a lot more influences thrown into the mix. There’s a very Norwegian feel to this release, ‘Rites Likes Chains’ (Self Released 2011) having an Immortal sound showing through on several of the tracks. There’s also a big thrash influence on show, but it’s definitely not Black-Thrash, Pete describing his sound as “A vicious bite ofDeath, Black and Thrash metal” and “A vicious splattering deluge of pure fucking metal”…no arguments here!
WRAPPED IN A SHEET is the brainchild of Scarecrow, hailing from Derby; this is yet another Black Metal band who adds a variety of influences into his music on ‘Vultures’ (Self Released 2011). Mixing harsh black metal with more gothic sounding sections by using synths and spoken / sung passages, Scarecrow has managed to create some unique and interesting music. There are moments on this release which are so catchy, not always a word associated with harsh black metal. Rather than using a drum machine, Scarecrow plays live drums and puts in a good first attempt, albeit a little simplistic, although he has assured me that on the next release, the drums will be improved.
Garr is the individual behind Yorkshire based Black Metal project NORTHERN TERROR. ‘Embracing Satan’ (Pure Blood Distribution 2011) features seven tracks of thrashy, industrial tinged black metal. There is a lot of melody to his sound, the BM aspect taking a back seat to the melodic and industrial elements, and Garr does appear to have a lot of influences outside of extreme metal which he is incorporating into his music. His music won’t necessarily appeal to everyone, but there is definitely something here for the more open minded fans of melodic, gothic and industrial Black Metal.
Woking based REGURGITATE LIFE offers up some solid death metal with a very old school feel. Sammy Urwin is the man bellowing out some really good, no frills straight for the throat death metal. Only two tracks on ‘Promo 2011’ (Self –Released 2011), both showing great promise and a man at ease playing this form of extreme metal. From a mid-paced rumble, to blasting sections, there’s variety to each of the tracks which definitely keeps things interesting, Sammy’s vocals being a highlight, reminiscent of old school Swedish bands somehow.
Having played is several UK underground acts, Sacha Varwin decided to go it alone and form MORBID ATROPHY, releasing ‘Grist ‘N’ Grind’ (Self Released 2011). This is a dirty, grinding release, Sacha having a fixation with beer on this release (aren’t we all fixated with beer?). It’s raw, it’s dirty, it blasts and its grinds, song lengths being typically around the one minute mark. Reminiscent of older Finnish black metal band such as Archgoat and (old) Impaled Nazarene, it is 6.66% nasty blackened grind. There’s even some techno style re-mixes at the end of the cd, something a bit different, but the original songs work much better!
Beginning to get some real recognition for his efforts, Tom, the one man killing machine behind FOUL BODY AUTOPSY has recently played live at Bloodstock 2011. Creating some extremely brutal and blasting death metal and leaning heavily towards U.S technical death metal, Tom grinds his way through this release, ‘Pathology’ (Self Released 2011) and adds some great variety to his songs via a black metal influence. Thirteen tracks in only twenty minutes, it’s precisely played technical death / grind. There’s even a track which lasts only six seconds! Brutal as fuck!
Sicko Joe Mawdsley (also drummer in Liverpool based perverts Dr.Aids) is a one man brutal slam-fest via his solo output through Xenophobic Misogynist. ‘Fritzled Throated and Left to Scaphe’ is a forthcoming split release with BUTCHERED BEYOND RECOGNITION (U.S) and SPHINKTA SPIT (U.K) and judging by Joe’s tracks, it is going to be an overwhelmingly brutal release. Brutal slam / goregrind is order of the day here, with added groove to give an old school grind feel and sound. Joe’s vocal range is superb, ranging from guttural death metal to pig squeals and everything in-between! It slams, its grinds it’s brutal as fuck and sick as fuck…enjoy!
UNDEAD PANDEMIC (Blackened Death/Grind), ERADICATED (Death/Grind) and PUTRID PUSTULENCE (Death Metal) are just a few others of many individuals who have decided to go it alone, preferring to have full control of the their respective bands rather than having to deal with other band members and the internal conflicts this can bring.
Tom~Foul Body Autopsy
There is without doubt some really talented individuals that are flying the flag for one man extreme metal bands, a shining example of what this country currently has to offer and undoubtedly more than capable of matching anything the genre has to offer from around the world. There is variety, extremity, melody, and atmosphere, we have it all – so let us embrace this sometimes overlooked aspect of extreme metal and all hail the current crop of UK Extreme Metal one man bands.
Split w/ Butchered Beyond Recognition (U.S) and Sphinkta Spit (U.K)
1.Gastrointestiphilia 2.Amputee Kung-Fu 3.Zombie 3 Way
4.Ungreasedbackdoorhammertimearsesmashing 5.Bloody Slam Gag
6.Fritzled Throated and Left To Scaphe.
Yet another one man band hailing from these shores, this time round we have Xenophobic Mysogonist, the sicko behind this project being Joe Mawdsely (also drummer in Liverpool based perverts Dr.Aids). This solo project being a world away from his exploits behind the kit with his other band. We are treated to six tracks of brutal slam/grindcore, the slam element to XM’s sound being the predominant feature throughout. ‘Gastrointestiphilia’ starts proceedings, no fancy intros here, no movie samples. A single snare hit introduces the song before blasting into brutal as fuck grindcore. There’s a big dose of groove to XM’s sound, especially when the pace is slowed down, the slam sections showing this groove off superbly. Joe’s vocal range is amazing, ranging from guttural death metal, to pig squeals and everything inbetween. ‘Amputee Kung-Fu’ has an old school grindcore feel to it when the song blasts insanely from the speakers. It then shifts down a gear into some real, full on slam, sick vocals puking all over the riffs. The groove side to XM is again on show, giving an old school, but brutal feel. ‘Zombie 3 Way’ is an all-out brutal affair, blasting drums backing some really brutal guitar work and as ever, Joes sickening voice adding to the songs appeal, his variety and range a real pleasure to listen to.
‘Ungreasedbackdoorhammertimearsesmashing’ is next up, all 24 seconds of it, not a brutal, short grind song as you might expect, but instead a 24 second brutal slam fest. Really good for such a short track! ‘Bloody Slam Gag’ is introduced with the use of a movie sample before opening up with the trademark slam so prevelant throughout all the tracks. The track does lose some focus towards it’s ending, sounding chaotic and out of control toward then end. But that was obviously the intention. To end this short e.p. we have ‘Friztled Throated and Left to Scaphe’, more of the same, blast and slam, the blasting, grind element more on show throughout this track. Guitars shred then slam to produce a quality song. Joe programs his drum machine very well, the drums not suffering from over-used hyper speed drumming, but instead used relatively simplistically but well thought out. If Joe ever decides he wants XM to be a full band, then it will be possible for a drummer to reproduce what the programmed drums are doing (to a point) without losing the essence of the songs. Summing up, it grinds, it slams, it’s brutal as fuck and sick as fuck and will be a very enjoyable cd when released as a split.
6.Nivis Canto 7.The Scarlet Woman 8.Death In The Marshes 9.Pavane in G Minor
10. In These Hills.
Sheffield’s Northern Oak describe their sound as progressive folk metal which is a fair description but there sound has more to it than that, Black Metal being at the core of the music they are producing. Opener ‘Sun God’s Wrath’ features all their influences, the harsh BM guitars and vocals, the epic sounding flute work which really stands out and gives the track its folk feel. ‘Gawain’ takes a more subtle, melodic approach. The flute again at the forefront of the song and this time round synths are introduced giving a very symphonic BM feel. It’s very atmospheric and epic sounding, the harshness of the BM vocals sitting perfectly alongside the folk elements of the flute and synths. Ever present is the BM style guitars which accompanies the other elements of Northern Oak’s sound perfectly.
‘In These Hills’ sees the band at their most Black metal, harsh guitar and vocals on show throughout most of the track, all backed up superbly by the flute and acoustic guitars. There is certainly a lot on offer here, every element to band’s sound working in conjunction with each other to produce what is a very unique, interesting and well executed sound. This will not be to everyone’s taste; there is a lot of progressive, folk inspired melody on offer and the pace throughout the entire cd remains slow to mid-paced. But that is where Northern Oak are succeeding, they aren’t following any trends, they aren’t treading any well-worn paths; they are creating their own path and treading it extremely successfully and uniquely. If you are looking for something a bit different from the norm, which retains and extreme metal edge but also offers a lot more, then this cd comes highly recommended.
