Putrefied, Gore-ific
I was half tempted to give Putrefied’s latest full length (the first in five years) a perfect score. It’s easily the strongest and most impressive death metal release I’ve heard all year. The band encompasses many aspects of metal into their brand of brutal death. Hell there are even instances of melody throughout this beastial album. From the tracks opener, Gore-ific impresses immediately with crushing riffs, blunt force trauma rhythms, catchy hooks, sanity defying leads and an impressive vocal delivery. Groovy death metal is smashed with blistering beats in an unholy and vicious combination of brutality and structure.
Toep Duin on drums and Rein Schorel on bass pool their efforts into brain battering rhythms and provide a powerful base from which the rest of crew build off of. Guitarists Dennis Hartog and Michael Blokker battle one another in a test of wills — who can outdo the other in terms of sheer riffing force and technical as fuck leads. All that’s left is a vocal delivery from Marcel Van Voorbergen that ranges from deep, indecipherable growls to a mid-range scream. All five of these dudes work well together to produce a massive, diabolical flood of brutal death metal.
Maggots of Sick Lies. Intoxicating Mankind
Chugging riffs and the catchy chorus open up the first track on Gore-ific. Creative drum work keeps the momentum moving along nicely through tempo shifts and breakdown like riffing. The guttural growls and gurgles delivery a message of annihilation. There are some thick bass lines running through this one as well. Lots of flow and groove dominate as the chorus comes in for a second time. The guitars at the 2:25 mark are down right evil. There’s a short lead that sneaks in at the 4:50 mark.
Grinding Bestiality
“Grinding Bestiality” really is a grinding beast of a track. Incorporating elements of gore-grind, the band rips through this one with a fervent and unbridled aggression. Nothing about this one is pretty. Each note is ugly, raw and full of vehement rage as unrelenting drums pound you to a quivering bag of flesh.
Great Masses of White Lank Bodies
Some quick, playful drums and a big growl start this one out. Head banging fun quickly ensues as Putrefied settle into a pummeling groove. Slick hooks and quick paced vocal cadence keep the band’s momentum surging through the speakers.
Yersina Pestis
A hellish bit of riffing and drumming takes violent hold of the listener as “Yersina Pestis” opens up. Layered backing vocals (courtesy of Arsebreed’s Joel Sta) adds a nice dynamic to the band’s sound. The beat to this one will have you pounding your head till its a bloody mess. Don’t miss the brief lead at the 2:45 mark. Oh and the band certainly lives up to the album’s title with the lyrics on this one.
Visions of Treachery
A Slayer like entrance to “Visions of Treachery” gets the Satanic vibe flowing as the band gets their inverted crosses burning bright. The duel vocal barrage during the chorus makes it sound that much more evil. Duin’s drum work is unrelenting as if he’s the one hammering in the crucifixion nails. Another brief lead at the 2:50 marks serves more as a tease than anything else — I want a more stretched lead if they are going to sound anything like the few notes we hear.
Vomito Negro
One can only imagine the disgusting and vile lyrics that are behind “Vomito Negro.” Actually, you don’t have to imagine. Just grab the liner notes and and start educating yourself on the effects of an extreme and horrific case of Ebola. The lead at the 1:25 mark should help you along. More backing vocals add to the band’s already well rounded presence. The track ends in a wave of nausea inducing chaos complete with insane drum blasts and ripping guitar work.
Surgery Bizarre
Big growls and a churning series of riffs open up this next track. This one is a massive, chugging track as heavy handed drums repeatedly hammer your face into a composite of bone and cartilage. There’s no messing around with this track. It’s a straight forward, brutal affair punctuated with animalistic drum blasts and driving riffs.
Black Steaming Cancerous Entrails
Mmmm… I do love me some black steaming cancerous entrails first thing in the morning. Especially when it’s served on a plate of pulverizing riffs and evil hooks. Throw in a catchy groove and I’ll have a second helping. If you haven’t figured it out yet, I really like this track. It’s got just about everything from the band’s repertoire in equal weights.
Reporting for Deportation
Move groove oriented beats and rhythms keep the momentum moving along at a brisk pace. This one isn’t so much about deportation as it is about total annihilation and extermination of the human race. It’s a brutal track with primitive riffs and guttural growls. There is an underlying melody that slithers in the background, but it’s nearly drowned out by Duin’s aggressive drum work (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing).
Totgemetzelt Im Schultzengraben
The final track on Gore-ific gets going with some of the quickest drum work we’ve heard on the album. The blasts are accompanied with evil hooks and riffing. I love the slow down at the 49 second mark. It’s a great and unexpected tempo change. The guitar around the two minute mark is insane and sounds like toxic bee burrowing into your skull. This thing is a chugging, fiendish track. What a hell of a way to end out a great album.
~ ~ ~
Yeah, I liked this one a bunch. It’s got great grooves, unrelenting brutality and enough catchy elements to keep it from falling into the monotonous pitfalls of many albums of this genre. Putrefied have outdone themselves with great song writing, excellent performances and a well-rounded production. This is easily among the top of my early list for album of the year.
Favorite Tracks:
All of them
Additional Notes:
N/A