December 26, 2010 | , | 4

Murder Construct, Murder Construct

Murder Construct: s/t

Well, ain’t this just a kick in the sack. Murder Construct, a “super group” of epic grind proportions featuring Cattle Decapitation’s Travis Ryan, Leon del Muerte (Exhumed, Impaled), Kevin Fetus (Watch Me Burn), Caleb Schneider (Bad Acid Trip) and Danny Walker (Exhumed, Phobia) have unleashed one hell of a debut EP with their self-title Murder Construct. Seven songs are forced into a very tight and blasting 17 minutes of dense and textured grinding death metal.

Those familiar with Ryan’s work in Cattle Decapitation are fully aware of his vocal capabilities, so you can expect sheer destruction belching from his throat (minus the social/political stance). His presence is, without a doubt, a dominating force on the EP as del Muerte and Fetus do their best to destroy every amp in their vicinity with buzzing, textured and nasty guitars that carry more than enough discordance. Supporting these miscreants is the thunderous combination of Schneider on bass and Walker on what I can only assume is a steel-reinforced kit ever made — this dude beats the living hell out of the drums on this disc.

Have no fear, however, this isn’t an EP that’s just a constant drone of distortion and maniacal drums. There are a few other influences seeping into the band’s seething malevolence. Opener “Control” sets the overall tone for the release with bone crushing rhythms, driving riffs and Ryan’s snarling barks and growls — but it most certainly is not a pattern for the mayhem to come. There’s a bit of a technical vibe to start off with as the guys shift into “No Savior” before injecting some black metal darkness into the mix.

The first half of “I Am That” is quite simply some of the more vicious, unrelenting shit I’ve heard in a while. The second half of that same song is more open and a bit more atmospheric with a touch of melody in the guitar — it makes for quite an interesting song that’s for sure. “End of an Error” is the longest and most involved song on the short disc, complete with technical death metal flourishes, tribal drumming, dark atmospheres and beefy rhythms. Album closer “Submission” is not one to miss either — it’s a bone crunching batch of destruction.

Murder Construct will probably take a few listens to fully digest. There’s a boat load of buzzing destruction going on in the short 17 minutes it takes to run through all seven songs. As far as “super groups” go, these dudes know how to lay down the grind with brutal effectiveness and have only up to go. It’s the injection of various other influences that truly make this debut release something special. Had it been straight forward grind-core, we might not be saying the things we are now, but as the band has expanded on that base sound with atmosphere, death metal and more, it’s hard to deny the impact they may have as a band going forward. I can’t wait for more from these guys as they grow as a group and really hone in on their own sound.