HIDEOUS MANGLEUES - All Your Friends Are Dead Reissue review

 

HIDEOUS MANGLEUES - All Your Friends Are Dead Reissue

Hells Headbangers Records

There's a lot to unpack here as far as personal history goes as well as other stuff. First off the original version of this CD came out in 1996 on Ecocentric Records. And for many Extreme Metal fans it's considered a unholy grail of Grind. I've got a copy albeit years after it came out and if memory serves me I think I got it "used". But there's some personal connection I have with HIDEOUS MANGLEUES. 

Back in the fall of 1989 I moved back to Pennsylvania from North Carolina. I don't want to get into the "whys" about it. In 1990 I saw an ad in a fanzine for the HIDEOUS MANGLEUES demo All Your Friends Are Dead. It was a thirty-two song cassette tape. It was like three bucks so I sent em a five for postage. Maybe a month went by until it came in the mail I fuckin liked it a lot. 

Now at that time I was also doing my own print fanzine, which was all about underground music, so I wrote to the band if they wanted to do an interview. I included a dozen questions to em in the package and that was it. Once again some weeks went by and the band sent me a package. In it was their interview answers as well as their new five song 7"er We Live... So yeah good times back in the 1990's. 

For history's sake HIDEOUS MANGLEUS started out in 1989. They were from around Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They were a four piece act consisting of Sam Biles on vocals, someone named Feev on guitar, Joel Bonde on bass, and Curt Bonde on drums. Why were they not well known back then? Well when the mainstream music media and labels at that time pushed other acts then the underground ones get lost in the way. 

But hey the cool thing is that HELLS HEADBANGERS, as always, delivers the goods when it comes to bands from the past who deserve recognition. Plus they put it out on CD as well as double vinyl. Musically HIDEOUS MANGLEUS were early ghouls of Grind who had a background in Punk fuckin Rock as well as Metal. I always thought they were a fun extreme sounding band. This is a soundtrack for insanity and getting reissued is one of the best things ever. Nuff Said!

https://shop-hellsheadbangers.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hideousmangleus.bandcamp.com/album/all-your-friends-are-dead-2

SHOCK NARCOTIC - My Flesh Is Afraid But I Am Not review

 

SHOCK NARCOTIC - My Flesh Is Afraid But I Am Not

Housecore Records

SHOCK NARCOTIC are a four piece US Grind act featuring musicians from acts like DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, PIG DESTROYER, BATTLECROSS and CHILD BITE. They started out in 2019 with a fourteen song debut EP titled I Have Seen the Future and It Doesn't Work. Back then I heard about the band but never decided check out their music.

Now after listening to this their debut full length I have a few things to say. First off musically this is a very generic style of modern Grind being put forth. Also you hear bits of Groove Metal, Death Thrash, bad 90's Hardcore and wannabe Old School HB1 DM crunch all entered into the mix. I didn't find anything exciting about the thirteen cuts on here. At best it's average.

Vocalist Shawn Knight does have a loud vicious maul when it comes to his singing style. Unfortunately he comes across as more of a 90's era Hardcore vocalist then his Grind vocalist peers from Poland or Finland. As far as the musicianship goes it's average. 

https://housecorerecords.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://shocknarcotic.bandcamp.com/album/my-flesh-is-afraid-but-i-am-not

ORGAN DEALER - Visceral Infection Reissue review

 

ORGAN DEALER - Visceral Infection Reissue

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

When it comes to Extreme Metal I not only believe in second chances and sometimes thirds. I also believe they're extremely necessary. I say that because of the fact that bands can release all of the stuff they want. But if there's no real promotion behind what they do, no good reviews or no scene trend that garners interest. Then some bands get lost in the whole scheme of things.

With all of that said here we have a Grindcore band from New Jersey, the place I was born in and raised up to my teens. That was a long time ago. But ORGAN DEALER is a band who came out at a time, in 2013, which was post all of the hipster bullshit into Grindcore. I mean as a fan of Grind this their debut album, Visceral Infection, from 2015 was a refresher course into real fuckin Grind. 

I know some purists will say "well I hear some Death Metal influence". Well OK fine but don't be an A-Hole about it. I mean you've got the savage vocals by a guy who sounds like he's being tortured by the Spanish Inquisition at some point. At other times it's a complete revolt against everything. The drum work is absolutely amazing. The song structures are chaotic. The guitar work is fucking amazing as well as chaotic. It's not mind blowing Grind but it's damm good.

I mean this came out in 2015 and here's your chance to get it again. I took the deep dive and looked up Best Grindcore albums of 2015. This wasn't even listed and the ones that were? Well I did own one from a famous UK Grindcore band and I sold it because it was boring. So there you go. If you're a Grind-head then this fucking reissue by ORGAN DEALER is mandatory.

https://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/visceral-infection-lp

VARIOUS ARTISTS - King Of The Kill 3 compilation

 

VARIOUS ARTISTS -  King Of The Kill 3 compilation

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

Sometimes when I listen to a compilation I find myself making note of the songs I don't like when the majority of the comp is cool. In this case yeah most of this sounds cool. To be more exact most of these cuts are Extreme Metal for crazed fans in the underground realm who like to get drunk, have crazy fun and beat people up. I know all about that because I was one of those people. But in all honesty I only beat up bad people. 

This is the third year where Horror Pain Gore Death Productions puts out an Extreme Metal compilation dedicated to the Ruthless Pro Wrestling yearly event called King Of The Kill. Now for those of you out there who are like "oh no wrestling is fake". I have a few words for ya. The outcomes are pre-determined but the physical brawling is real. And yeah people are injured but no one wants that to happen. 

As someone who grew up with Professional Wrestling (Wrassling) in the 1970's I'll tell ya when ECW out of Philly came around in their early days it was the best of Extreme Wrestling. I've still got VHS tapes of various matches where people in the audience would hand wrestlers frying pans to pound their opponents head in with. Another match an audience member handed a wrestler his prosthetic leg to use as a weapon. And of course during a Terry Funk match the crowd just threw all of their metal chairs into the ring. 

With all of that said Ruthless Pro Wrestling is worse. I mean the wrestling competitors will all walk out of the squared circle bloodied and if not standing then lying on the mat in a pool of their own blood. It's like ancient Roman gladiator games minus the swords. Which is why it's called a Deathmatch tournament. So this label, HPGD, decides to come out with another compilation of bands from their label to celebrate people beating the crap of people. Albeit these ain't wrestling themed songs but they're in that Extreme Metal style. 

As far this compilation goes I have to admit that I'm more a fan of the Death Metal acts on here but overall I do have some favorites. Bands like ELBOW DEEP and ANCESTOR OF KAOS are pretty good DM with punishment sounding stuff. ORGAN DEALER rule with their Grindcore attack. BOCC are trudging Death Doom and yeah I like it. RED BRICK are screeching Grindcore. LESCH-NYHAN is knuccle dragging BDM. THE CRIPPLER comes in with a cool as fuck Death Thrash cut. 

Next up we have fuckin MUTILATRED killing it with some great BDM. That's followed by an amazing band to which I've written about before and they are PUTRASCENSION. This is cool sounding Melodic Black Fuckin Metal. You need to own their latest full length. If you don't then I'm gonna call you horrible names. Next up is MAUSOLEUM great OSDM that fuckin rules! 

Now we come to the crazy shit of this compilation. COCAINE CULTURE is Black Metal but doesnt invite me to see the devil but still it's cool. MUDSHOW is brutal sounding Sludge. MATSUNAGA WAS RIGHT contributes the best 25 second Grind cut you ever heard in your fuckin life. ROAD PIG is interesting but I don't know whatafuck to call it. MOONS is basic Stoner Rock and normally I wouldn't give two fucks about em. But after all of the brutal abuse to the psyche this comp delivers hell ya probably need a joint to relax. KOSUKE HASHIDA delivers some good Death Thrash. MENTAL FUNERAL deliver the OSDM. The final cut is by the band L.M.I. and once again I don't know what to call it. Is it Hardcore or Metal or both?

Whatever the case Horror Pain Gore Death Productions has unleashed a whirlwind of a compilation here. 

https://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/king-of-the-kill-3

PULPIT VOMIT - Hospital Lens review

 

PULPIT VOMIT - Hospital Lens

Rottweiler Records

Can I just say that so far this year it's been total shit for Grindcore music. I mean I've been hit with stuff like Atmospheric Grindcore, Post Grindcore and Brutal Death Grind. The latter I can handle but as far as the first two go. What the fuck are you talking about or even playing. Now as far as this release by PULPIT VOMIT goes. Well they're not gonna win any accolades but at least they're a fuckin Grindcore band. 

PULPIT VOMIT hails from California, USA where Grindcore originated from. Now I don't want to hear any bullshit from one of you English twats about where Grindcore started. The REPULSION demo, Slaughter of the Innocent, from 1986 is where Grindcore officially starts. Nuff Said!

This is the debut full length by this three piece Grind act who started out in 2022. You have Seth Metoyer on vocals and guitars, Kris Olson plays bass and Tim Olson is on drums. Prior to this the band had only been releasing singles. Since this is only a eight song release with a sixteen plus minute time structure. Personally I'd call it an EP but I go by what they label says. 

Musically this sounds like old school Grind with hellish screaming. The drum work is solid with plenty of stop / start action. The riff work is simplistic but decent. "Razor Jaw" is a great opener. I also like "The Filth" a lot. "No Place in Power" is pretty psychotic I like that. Everything else is decent. 

In the end this is a straight up real Grindcore release which I like. Give this band some time and room to really go crazy and I'll be back. 

https://www.rottweilerrecords.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://pulpitvomit.bandcamp.com/track/the-filth-single

AND HERE:

https://pulpitvomit.bandcamp.com/track/razor-jaw-single

NAKED WHIPPER - Chapel Defilement review

 

NAKED WHIPPER - Chapel Defilement

Iron Bonehead Productions

Well there's a lot to unpack here so let's start by the fact that this is NAKED WHIPPER's second full length of their career. And just for full disclosure I'm liking what I hear from this release. But the last time this German band was heard from was in the mid-1990's. Oh well what does a thirty year break matter when the music is good.

Speaking of which musically NAKED WHIPPER's sound is Blackened Grind and this release is a relentless barrage of that. The first song "Depraved to the Bone" pretty much describes what you're gonna get out of this 13 cut full length. I mean you're getting violent grind / thrash riffs, your typical blasted grind drum work. If there's bass playing then it's lost most of the time. 

I guess the most fun is listening to the bestial vocals by mainman Dominus A.S. who started NAKED WHIPPER back in 1993. On this album he's got Sonic Incinerator on guitar, Sulphur Irae on bass and the amazing drum work is provided by Cryptic Tormentor. Yeah I know the fake names are funny but the drumming on here is killer. 

Obviously I like this because I'm a long time Grind fan. I was into Grindcore before it actually had a genre title. It was a sound which came out of the late 80's Hardcore scene. Then metal musicians picked up on it and perfected the sound aka: REPULSION and NAPALM DEATH. 

As far as Blackened Grindcore goes yeah over the decades there's been a handful of bands that come under that fold. But I think this new full length by Germany's NAKED WHIPPER is the best sounding take as far as real Blackened Grind should sound like. It's an unholy soundtrack of filth, rage and sonic devistation. An amazing release which BM fans as well as Grind fans, who are not posers, will appreciate. 

https://ironbonehead.de/

LISTEN HERE:

https://nakedwhipper.bandcamp.com/album/chapel-defilement

CRUSHUMAN - Besides EP review

 

CRUSHUMAN - Besides EP

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

The maniacs from Upper Marlboro, Maryland are back and they're angry as fuck. I first learned about this extreme sounding three piece in 2024 via their self titled full length which came out on Horror Pain Gore Death Productions.

Musically that album had a lot of variety as in Death Metal, Grindcore and post 90's Hardcore. Looking back I actually liked their aggro-grind and Hardcore stuff. In the end I thought this band has a way of creating apocalyptic sounding metal.

So as far as this nine song EP goes it starts out great but then goes into territory which I don't know what to say. The first two cuts "Select Sacrifice" and "Waiting for a Savior" are cool as in a Hardcore band playing Death Metal. Hell yeah start a slam pit in your basement when your parents are away. "Dead End Suffering" ain't too bad of a cut. 

But when "Apeasement to the Frauds" kicks in then it's really not a cool time. That goes with what follows afterwards. There's way too much not so cool HC style modern riffs which makes me hate to think these guys wear backwards baseball caps and shorts on stage.  Their first album was better but the HC crowd will like this one either way.   

https://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/besides

VARIOUS ARTISTS - Transcending Obscurity 2025 label sampler review

 

VARIOUS ARTISTS - Transcending Obscurity 2025 label sampler

Transcending Obscurity Records

Well one of my favorite labels puts out their great stuff for 2025 so everyone to check out. I know last year Transcending Obscurity Records had a handful of 2024 favorites in my end of the year listings. Listening to this sampler gives me some ideas on what bands I really wanna check out in 2025. 

For the record the list on this compilation here is as follows:

1. Floating (Sweden) - I Reached The Mew (Death Metal/Post Punk)

2. Byonoisegenerator (Russia) - Eb(D#) (Jazzgrind)

3. Veilburner (US) - That Which Crypts Howls Grandeur (Avant-garde Death/Black Metal)

4. Serpent Corpse (Canada) - Iron Corpse (Death Metal)

5. Dead Chasm (Italy) - Spectral Tyranny (Death/Doom Metal)

6. Viande (France) - L'homme Brasier (Death Metal)

7. Thorn (US) - Quartersawn Remains (Death Metal)

8. Retching (US) - Shower Curtain Silhouette (Death Metal)

9. Eschaton (US) - Blood of the People (Technical Death Metal)

10. Unaligned (US) - Essence Erased (Technical Blackened Death Metal)

11. Fleshbore (US) - The Ancient Knowledge (Technical Death Metal)

12. Enragement (Finland) - Insectiferous Abomination (Brutal Death Metal)

13. Haxprocess (US) - The Confines of the Flesh (Progressive Death Metal)

14. Xenosis (US) - Altar of the Hound (Progressive Death Metal)

15. Imperialist (US) - Starstorm (Black Metal)

16. Skaphos (France) - Abyssal Tower (Death/Black Metal)

17. Obscureviolence (Russia) - Pulse of Subconscious Cruelty (Death/Black Metal)

18. Shrine of Denial (Turkey) - Climbing Through Nothingness (Death/Black Metal)

19. Crown of Madness (Canada) - Ashes of Mine (Dissonant Death Metal)

20. Mors Verum (Canada) - Bloodied Teeth (Dissonant Death Metal)

21. Hexrot (US) - Heavenward (Avant-Garde Death Metal)

22. Perishing (Costa Rica) - Castle of the Leached Body (Death/Doom Metal)

23. Dwelling Below (US) - Wearisome Guardians (Death/Doom Metal)

24. Felgrave (Norway) - Pale Flowers Under an Empty Sky (Avantgarde Death/Black/Doom Metal)

25. Misanthropæ (US) - Enshrined (Dissonant Death Metal)

26. Pillar of Light (US) - Certain End (Sludge/Doom/Post-Metal)

So the bands I'm interested in from this year's label acts are a FLOATING from Sweden who sound interesting with their Death Metal meets Post Punk sound. Then there's BYONOISEGENERATOR from Russia because they sound like some really insane grindcore. SERPENT CORPSE from Canada is cool old school Death Metal. Add to that there's DEAD CHASM from Italy, VIANDE from France and RETCHING from the US all of whom are old school DM. 

Yes as all readers of this blog (and frankly who isn't a reader by now) know old school Death Metal is my go to sound. But this sampler has plenty of bands pushing the progressive or brutal tech side of the genre. There's also some interesting Black Metal by IMPERIALIST from the US. SKAPHOS from France sounds cool as well. As far as the slow and low sounds of Death Doom go there's a couple of bands on here but PERISHING from Costa Rica is definitely promising. 

All in all this sampler is 26 tracks of extreme metal mayhem that'll please any fan of uncontrolled musical destruction and chaos. That's why I like this label and it's also why a dozen or more of their releases appear on my end of year favorite list. Let me also add that the song sequencing on here is killer. In the beginning the music tortures you, by the mid point you're getting the shit beat out of ya and in the end you're buried alive. How cool is that? That's cool as shit so support this label.

https://tometal.com/

LISTEN HERE: 

https://transcendingobscurity.bandcamp.com/album/2025-label-sampler

ASS TO MOUTH - Enemy of the Human Race review

 

ASS TO MOUTH - Enemy of the Human Race

Selfmadegod Records

So with a band name ASS TO MOUTH I'm gonna guess that these guys are into some extreme porn. Although on this release I couldn't find anything in their fourteen cuts which represented that. To me that's actually a good thing because at this point in time I'm tired of it. On the good side I found this band to be pretty cool sounding. 

ASS TO MOUTH are a three piece Grind / Brutal Death Metal act hailing from the great nation of Poland. Now as we all know Poland is the most Extreme Metal nation in Europe and Grindcore is nothing new to their musicians, But listening to this band's third full length I'm like holy shit that nation rules another genre. ASS TO MOUTH mix Grindcore, Brutal DM and some fuckin cool as Hardcore to their sound.

This is an album that I could see a lot of modern punk rock fans leaning to. I mean the vocals are a mix of screeches and hardcore vocals. The drum work sounds like pounding on Tupperware. There's a cool rocking anti-Notsee song. Some gang vocal sing along cuts meet with grinded out endings. In the end this fucker rocks. 

 

https://selfmadegod.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://selfmadegod.bandcamp.com/album/enemy-of-the-human-race

SICKRECY / BARREN split

 

SICKRECY / BARREN split 

Selfmadegod Records

OK give me a great Grindcore split release and it's about fuckin time. Readers of this blog (and frankly who isn't) know my love of grind. So here we have a worthy release by two bands I've never heard before. Let's start with SICKRECY who are a five piece act from Sweden. I'm looking at their line up since starting out in 2021 and seeing some familiar names. 

There's vocalist Adde Mitroulis who's also in BIRDFLESH as well as formerly playing drums for GENERAL SURGERY. So musically this is some decent standard grind which is cool on their six songs. But then there's BARREN who are a four piece act from Belgium who are totally death grind and who are more into pushing the insanity than SICKRECY. 

Their part on this split consists of nine cuts of insane ferocity, scream in your fuckin face death grind. Hellish vocals meets aggressive beat down rhythms with that crusty crushing sound. In the end BARRON wins this one hands down. 

https://selfmadegod.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://sickrecy.bandcamp.com/album/split-with-barren

https://barrenchainsawgrind.bandcamp.com/album/split-w-sickrecy

FACHE - Violent au volant review

 

FACHE - Violent au volant

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

Can I just say this is the best Grindcore release you will hear in 2024 then I can go on my back deck, have a beer and listen for the random gunfire? Oh well I guess not. Ladies & Gentlemen (and you confused types) This is the second full length by FACHE who hail from Quebec. I know some people will say "you mean Canada". But no, I support the Quebec resistance. 

Be that as it may FACHE (which in French means "angry") are a three piece Grindcore band who are totally into the angry maniacal style of the genre that has for the past decade needed a kick in the fuckin ass. The first time I checked this album out was on a night, late after work and I had already had an SOB and a MFer to boot at my job. I just wanted to come home, have a few beers and relax with some music. But no I'm checking out this French for "angry" act and wondering what the fuck did I do to deserve this type of punishment. 

And by the way FACHE is all about punishment as well as hate. The title of this album Violent Au Volant translates into English as Violent While Driving. Hell I've got a great friend who's a road rage maniac. He's gotten better now since he's gotten a newer vehicle. But a year ago he'd be yelling at other drivers and would come close to ramming people. So here you have thirty-five songs in less then twenty four minutes. Truly, listening to this is like being tied to cactus out in the desert and having someone beat the shit out ya. Ah yeah I've heard a story about something like that from an old friend. 

Sure I'm known for hyperbole but this album is fuckin cool as far as grindcore goes. I mean there's times when the riffs really rock. The vocals are insane. The drum work is beyond over the top. Listening to this puts that sadistic smile on my face. Although when I think about being a passenger in my road rage friend's vehicle I don't know. But hey the songs are in French, the sound is just fuckin insane and there's no bullshit going on. For years grind fans looked to Finland or Poland to get their grindcore fix. But in 2024 just look to Quebec people, the Great French North.

https://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE: 

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/violent-au-volant

HATCHEND - Summer of 69 review

 

HATCHEND - Summer of 69

Selfmadegod Records

So I'll get the obvious out of the way. Let's give the artist who came up the cover of this release some due. Re-imagining Andy Warhol's famous pop art Marilyn Monroe painting and supplementing Charles Manson's face on to it is interesting. Although if I saw this in a store I'd think it was a punk band release. Also a punk band who thought they were being cute. Then again I might think they're some indie / hiptard band trying to be ironic with the cover and the title. Thankfully there's music involved ahead of it. 

So what we have here is HATCHEND a four piece act from Sweden who are, in their words, a Thrash and Hardcore band. Hey guys ya got plenty of grindcore influence to which is why I gave this a second and third listen. That last listen sealed the deal for me. If anything HATCHEND's goal on this their debut full length is to rip off your head and shit down your neck. That is evident with their violent guitar riff attack and their vocalist who has a sheet metal roar that'll leave scars. 

This eight song album from start to finish is a full on assault to your senses. And not just mine I mean the neighbors dogs started barking and their motion lights went on. Whatafuck? By the way Sweden what happened to Death Metal? Be that as it may yeah this pounds, grinds and also rocks like a 'sumbitch' (that's a Southern US term). HATCHEND also include in their sound some Death n Roll influence which is wild. They're like the sixth band this year I've heard pushing that style and I like it. 

Get this one, blast it at a party and watch as a slam pit erupts in your living room. Who cares if your expensive flat screen TV goes flying out the front window. That'll happen by the third song of course. I can only smile in a sadistic way when I listen to this release. Yeah this one rocks your ass off. 

https://selfmadegod.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://selfmadegod.bandcamp.com/album/summer-of-69

CRUSHUMAN - Self Titled review

CRUSHUMAN - Self Titled

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

A few years back there was a Death Metal act hailing from Washington, DC called SNIPERS OF BABEL. Despite having a bunch of short form releases to their credit. The band's only claim to fame their 2022 full length Gabriel which also came out on Horror Pain Gore Death Productions. 

This band, CRUSHUMAN, has two former members from that band. You've got Mike Bossier on guitar and bass plus drummer Mike Lumer. Their vocalist is Danny Boiko. So on this their debut full length the band's a three piece. But on a handful of songs they do have some invited guests adding vocals. 

Musically CRUSHUMAN create an extreme sided mix of Death Metal, Grindcore and post 90's Hardcore. Now given all of that, out of these seventeen songs I'm gonna go out on a non extreme metal limb and say I like their Hardcore sounding stuff. Thankfully I don't have a comments section or I'd be pillared for that. 

But hey when you hear songs like "Champions of Ruin", "Syko", "Slock", "Assassin's Special" and "Lose Face", just to name a few from the first half of this album. You can just feel that slam pit worthy energy. Now trust me, this is not Metalcore or Deathcore like the stuff we remember and cringe at. This is metal or maybe Death & Roll to a point. 

Now of course the band lays out a lot of other punishment via the crushing and atmospheric death doom of "There Was Blood Everywhere". Add to that they do the whole aggro-grind stuff. I mean yeah CRUSHMAN has created a real apocalyptic genre defying sound which would probably be a hit with anyone under thirty. 

Since I'm beyond that age group I'll just keep an eye on a neighbor who has a teenager into Metal and a basement. Ya never know, when he and his wife are out of town I'll probably see a bunch of cars parked outside, hear a fuckin racket and will know you've got a house show going on. But hey I might be that cool guy ya see down the street and wave to when I'm out front ranking leaves wearing a NAPALM DEATH shirt. But I ain't buying ya beer. 

https://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/crushuman

 

SULLY - Self Titled review

 

SULLY - Self Titled 

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

If you're a young person than this album will take a few listens to get into. But for older grindcore heads it's fuckin music to our ears. As I always try to point out histirically Grindcore started out from the late 1980's Hardcore scene. Metal picked it up right afterwards. And they've done a great job of expanding the extreme nature of the genre world-wide. But as much as I like the metal era of the genre I always go back to the beginning as a fan. Now not all the way because most of these new punk/HC Grind revival bands blow. But some....  

SULLY, who hail from Rochester New York and have a bunch of music veterans, are doing their best to remember the late 80s / early 90s Grind. Basically you've got guitarist Erik Burke (who use to play in BRUTAL TRUTH for six years). On vocals there's Adam Frappolli who use to be in this Tech-Core band called PSYOPUS. Filling out the rhythm section is Alex Perez on drums and Ed Jusko playing bass. 

Musically SULLY come across fairly interesting as something guitarist Erik Burke knows too well. So basically we're looking at BRUTAL TRUTH - lite. Now I say that because I'm a BRUTAL TRUTH fan at least from the early days. The first time I saw em was in the mid ninties and there was like thirty people in the audience. The second time I saw em there were less then that. The last time I saw em Erik Burke was in the band and there's was at least a hundred people in the audience but at a hall that could fit three hundred. 

And I have to say that the BRUTAL TRUTH releases Erik Burke was playing on were not my faves. So be that as it may this is basically Erik Burke's solo thing. Honestly it's a cool release with twelve cuts that could've been heard on a BRUTAL TRUTH release. The guy has a perfect rhythm section that does an amazing job. The vocals are cool. But it's all about the song structures and that, along with the riff package, which makes this pretty cool. 

But honestly I'm not keen on the name SULLY. I mean it reminds me of a mechanic's name from the 1980's. for example "Hey Sully there's an extra ten in it for ya if the Buick passes inspection, if you know what I mean". Or "Hey Sully I need you to check out my brakes. I almost hit some cocksucker the other day." Or "Hey Sully my tranny is still fuckin up, like my o'l lady. Could you check it out or I'm going down to that (racial slur) place and give him my fuckin business." 

With all of that said I wanna hear their next album because this is a cool start heading in a good direction. SULLY are the future for any old BRUTAL TRUTH fan.

https://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/sully

KOSUKE HASHIDA - Justifiable Homicide review

 

KOSUKE HASHIDA - Justifiable Homicide

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

I know a friend who's heavily into what I'd call "gore cinema". In other words he's a collector of the really sick stuff that's made it's way in film. I remember him once telling me he was into watching a lot of Japanese serial killer films. Hey I didn't know that was a thing. But I believe this is an album that could sum it all up. 

What we have here is just short of seventeen minutes of audio Japanese murder mayhem. This is the debut full length by Kosuke Hashida from Tokyo, Japan. On here he's a one man act performing everything obviously. But from I've learned he was / is a guitarist in a death metal act called WORLD END MAN. I can't say that I'm familiar with them.  

Be that as it may, on Justifiable Homicide Kosuke Hashida has created a slash and burn concoction of death grind which is totally punishing to say the least. Not only should this release contain a warning label. But I'd also add recommended dosage instructions. Repeated listening could result in fits of anxiety as well as paranoia. 

Musically this guy provides a fuckin relentless wall of angry, threatening riffs, punishing drum work and barked vocals. Hell he even finds space to fit in some thunderous bass riffs. I thought that was cool being there's an absence of guitar soloing. So if ya got seventeen minutes to kill (pun intended) this one is definitely recommended for a search. 

What's really funny is the fact that what music I have from Japanese extreme music acts whether they be grindcore, black metal or hardcore. My favorite band from Japan has always been GUITAR WOLF. 

https://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/justifiable-homicide

TROCAR - Extremities review

 

TROCAR - Extremities

Selfmadegod Records

OK so I'll first get the baggage out of the way. I learned about TROCAR via the HORROR PAIN GORE DEATH PRODUCTIONS 2023 compilation. They had one song on it "Wonders Cease". The band FLUIDS also appeared on that compilation which bares explanations as well. TROCAR is a side project of FLUIDS members Jan Grotle (guitar) and Walter Hale (synths / programming) but in FLUIDS he's their drummer. 

Just to get this out of the way FLUIDS is a damm good death grind band from Phoenix, Arizona. They've done a split with NUNSLAUGHTER (yeah I have that one), have a ton of short form releases as well as a full length. I've got a compilation from them titled Fluids of Death 2 which came out on Hells Headbangers Records. So TROCAR are not far from their mark. 

Along with Jan Grotle and Walter Hale TROCAR features vocalist Schuler Benson. But there are a few guests as well on this release. So musically this is total psychotic grindcore for the most part. I think the four minute plus "Psalter of Manias" is a great middle finger to any mainstream metal person's face because of it's slow paced grinding aesthetic. Most of these cuts are grind insanity aka: fast dirges with high pitched screamed vocals. In the end it's a cool and something you'll remember to blast to your neighbors.

https://selfmadegod.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://thetrocar.bandcamp.com/album/extremities-2

KNOLL - As Spoken review

 

KNOLL - As Spoken

Self Released

After listening to this I have to wonder about two things. The first is what type of horrors live within the minds of this Tennessee five piece act in order to inspire this kind of extreme music hell. The second one is how come no one has signed this band yet. 

Musically this is grindcore drilled through the lens of a Mario Bava film festival. I'm sure some psychotropic drugs were involved as well. While I was listening to this I kept thinking of Barbara Steele walking into my office wearing a PIG DESTROYER shirt and nothing else. Love it to death and then some never meant so much in that fantasy. But hey I digress. 

Just for the record KNOLL are not newcomers. In fact the band started out in 2017. To their credit they have a few short form releases, a live release (did they really play Roadburn?) and two full lengths prior to this one. And they're not signed to a label of any kind. Whatafuck is up with that? Don't get me wrong I'm not into the be signed or die rule. But there are so many cool underground labels which could expose this band to a wider bunch of fans.

With that area stated I'd say musically there are three notable things about this album. First and foremost are the banshee like shrieks which are the vocals. What torments this guy to come up with that vocal style is beyond what I care to know. Secondly you've got a combination of the claustrophobic and twisted sound structures that are at some points a wall of noise. At other times it's like falling into an abyss of blackened filth with something from the imagination of Lovecraft waiting for you. 

In the end this is avant-grind with real horror behind the veil, at least you hope it is, to invoke some macabre nightmares to say the fuckin least. Hell while I was listening to this a thunder storm was going on. Better yet a lightning strike hit close by and shook the house. So I did the smartest thing. I turned up the volume to drown out the storm.

LISTEN TO AND BUY IT HERE:

https://knollgrind.bandcamp.com/album/as-spoken 

ARTHOUSE FATSO - Sycophantic Seizures: A Double Feature review

 

ARTHOUSE FATSO - Sycophantic Seizures: A Double Feature

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

First off as far as this release goes I liked the opening soundbite of Orson Welles. Just for the record I am an old movie fan and I consider Citizen Kane from 1941 to be my second favorite movie of all time. The Third Man from 1949 comes up in my fave list as well. But classic movies aside we're talking music and what we have here is a grindcore act from Germany. 

Now honestly when it comes to grindcore from Europe I'd say Germany is the last place you would look. Don't get me wrong I'm sure there's bands in Germany doing grindcore but honestly the competition elsewhere is overwhelming. Be that as it may here we have ARTHOUSE FATSO (maybe a reference to Orson?). This is a one man act. The one man goes by the name The Director who is responsible of the usual aka: everything. 

Musically this is a cross of grind, techno and rantings from maybe the grand child of someone from the Baader-Meinhof Gang. Sure musically it's avant-grind to the fullest. You've got sheet metal riffs for the most part. The vocals are a mix of singular and gang chorus adaptation, both gruff and clean. 

At least they add in some of the Orson Welles fuck ups via commercial stuff in the end which I have on a funny outtakes CD. But anyways after blasting this for a while you'll need a break and a fuckin place to sit down for a while. This seventeen song release is quality because the artist is actually trying to be original. I'll give em that in spades. But is it all in jest or is it serious? Grind heads should decide on their own but hey great band name. 

https://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE: 

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/sycophantic-seizures-a-double-feature

FEED THE CORPSES TO THE PIGS - Anthology review

 

FEED THE CORPSES TO THE PIGS - Anthology

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions

Back in 2021 I checked out this Albuquerque, New Mexico band's debut full length This Insidious Horror. That also came out on this label. Now back then I might've joked about the band having a guest musician of some past fame playing guitar on one of their tracks. Overall I thought they didn't need him because the music by this four piece act was good on it's own. We're talking about a good mix of early to modern sounding grindcore with doses of other extreme metal influences. 

I was also looking forward to hearing something new by this band. But this is not it. Actually this is the band's 2019 self released EP which Horror Pain Gore Death Productions has reissued. Now what ya have here are eight tracks by the band but there's a twist. This is basically a concept EP containing two stories. Once I learned that then the second time listening to it put things in a different perspective. 

Now just for the record the two stories are Corpselights and Eternal Servitude. The first story Corpselights is about a serial killer who is trying to stop the corpse lights of his victims from haunting him. In all honesty I've never heard the term "corpse lights". I'm thinking it means ghosts. The second story Eternal Servitude is about a teenager out for revenge. I might be old now but looking back upon my younger days I can relate to that. Of course after this I had to go back to their full length and reevaluate the songs on that one. Someone call KING DIAMOND because we've got a grindcore act doing horror stories.

But as always what matter most to me is the music. So while listening to this I can say that the band definitely progressed on their debut from this release. They're still in with their formula of grind with additions of death & black metal influences. I think there's more hardcore influence on here as opposed to their debut full length. But with that said it's not four guys making a racket. There's song craft going on here which jumps out at you. All of which makes me really want to hear some new stuff by this band. I mean look at these guys. do they look like they're bullshitting? 

https://www.horrorpaingoredeath.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://hpgd.bandcamp.com/album/anthology

SACROFUCK - Swi​e​ta krew review

 

SACROFUCK - Swi​e​ta krew

Godz ov War Productions

Well with a name like SACROFUCK, what's not to like? Anyways the tagline on this is death metal. But after one listen you'll hear some grindcore and death thrash influences. I mean their drummer Soulreaper (aka: Jerzy Wojcik) has / is playing in some other thrash and grind acts. One of the guitarists plays in a thrash band. Everyone else has been involved in death metal or black metal for a while. 

But hey SACROFUCK hail from Poland so you would expect something wild from one of the greatest extreme metal scenes in Europe. The skinny on em is as follows. The band started out in 2006 and mainly put out demos and short form releases for many years. The mainman of the band is Paplakathor (aka: Michal Paplak) whose been the guitarist/vocalist since it's beginning. 

Over so many years the band finally got a cohesive line-up to put out their debut full length Ekstaza upodlenia in 2019. So this one here is it's follow-up. And just for starters when this album opens forth it's like someone grabbing you by the throat and holding ya as the torture issues. Yeah this is around thirty four minutes of Polish extreme metal punishment. 

You've got the almost painful assault of the snare drums via grindcore influences. The riffs are down right death metal psychotic. The guitar soloing is part dive bomb into your psyche and part surgically slicing away at your humanity. And the vocals come across as if the guy is tripping on acid while having been set on fire. 

SACROFUCK's Swi​e​ta krew is a hell bent on destruction release. As I mentioned in the beginning it's labeled as Death Metal but the grind influences are so evident as well as punishing that I have to say no. This is more great Polish grindcore and when this album ends you just push repeat so the pleasure of the pain continues on.

http://godzovwar.com/

LISTEN HERE:

https://godzovwarproductions.bandcamp.com/album/wi-ta-krew