It's that time again where I puke all over the thread:
-The Crown -
Eternal Death:
The Crown are easily one of the few Gothenburg bands that I can really stand listening to all that often, because these guys mix in a palpable level of influence from all over the metal spectrum (most notable thrash).
Eternal Death is more straight up death metal-oriented than their later records, coming off as a mix of Gothenburg's overt melodies and death metal's tempo and ferocity, resulting in arguably the strongest work of their career. The riffwork is ultra catchy, but they're delivered with a fury and intensity that many of their peers simply couldn't match. The drumming is fucking stellar; this dude knows when to slam on gas and when to slow it
Down, with a superbly musical, easy going (yet
Aggressive) drum performance. Johan Lindstand's gravelly, high-pitched vocal delivery is also excellent, one of the most furious vocal performances i've ever heard.
The songs on this are really just excellent and well constructed, from the intensely catchy opener, in the form of "Angels Die*", the mid-paced and melodic (yet still meaty) "The Serpent's Garden", the more purely death metal-minded "Kill (The Priest"), or the midpaced and lengthy closer. These guys know how to write a great song, and despite the fairly long length (52-ish minutes), they're never unable to get your attention. Most of their work is pretty damn strong, but this is probably my favourite overall.
*As an aside, the
Omen III sample in the middle of this song fucking owns. That is all.
-Carcass -
Tools of the Trade:
Most people don't seem to give a shit about this EP, which sucks because it fucking rules hard. This was released between
Necroticism and
Heartwork, but it really evokes more of a combination of Necroticism's more restrained, technical (yet highly catchy) take on
Death Metal with some of the grind from their first two records infused. The result is an EP that avoids the main thing that
Hurt Necroticism (the bloat) and delivers some of the best songs of Carcass's career, in the form of the excellent title track and the lengthy yet impressively written "Hepatic Tissue Fermentation II". The other track is good, and overall this is definitely a worthy listen if you're a fan of Carcass' more
Death Metal minded work.
-Cadaver -
Necrosis:
I bought this for four bucks used this week, and in great fucking condition too!
Cadaver was one of the more forward thinking
Death Metal bands of the early 90's, but they went ignored and broke up, only to be resusitated years later as
Cadaver Inc before returning to the
Cadaver moniker proper and putting out this beast.
What does it sound like? A death/thrash band meeting
Voivod and doing a shitload of crack. The riffs are excellent, with more of the same unnerving phrasing and odd chords that was Voivod's Bread and Butter throughout the late 1980's (think
Killing Technology, in particular), but in a more
Death Metal context. The songs are lurching and
Vicious, driven forward by the odd riffs and the punishing yet tasteful drumming of Carl Michael Eide (who some will know for his more avant-garde efforts with
Ved Buens Ende and Virus), and they deliver some great moments. The production job is also excellent, reflecting a time when producers didn't know whether to use analog or digital production methods. It's weird
Dry and cluttered, but it sounds great. Overall, highly worth getting... this was practically a fucking steal for what I paid for it.
-Bolt Thrower -
Realm of Chaos:
I love
The IVth Crusade more, but this is undoubtedly Bolt Thrower's most obscenely heavy, crushing record. Evoking images of a destrutive war between infantry in the trenches, this is simple monstrous. This reflects their more crust punk/grind past more than their later records, infusing the typical Bolt Thrower Groovy Riffs with an absolutely vicious, filth-ridden feel. Karl Willets found his vocal stylings here - production effects or not, his monstrous roars fit this band perfectly. The performances are still sloppy as hell, but tighter than the debut, and the songs are absolutely fucking deadly. "Through the Eye of Terror", "Lost Souls Domain", "Plague Bearer", "World Eater" and the title track are literally among Bolt Thrower's greatest songs, with crushing riffs, sudden switches into vicious, grinding passages, and yet overall strong songcraft carries the band. The production is dirty as hell, perfectly fitting the tunes.
It's Bolt Thrower. Bolt Thrower are fucking boss, but
Realm of Chaos and
IVth Crusade are absolutely mandatory.
-Morbid Angel -
Domination:
I gave this a relisten about half a week ago and I have to say, it's not quite as bad as I intitally knocked it for. But it's unquestionable weaker than the first three albums with David Vincent at the helm for a few reasons:
It's not as consistent, for one. "Dominate" starts off the record furiously, not matching up to "Immortal Rites" or "Rapture" that well, but it delivers some great riffs and a fantastic solo. (the lead guitar tone on this is fucking
gorgeous) "Where The Slime Live" is a great song too, more sludgy and groove oriented, but packing some great riffs and a great solo section. There's some others that are good here and there, like "This Means War", and "Dawn of the Angry".
The problem is that the rest of the record is a mixed bag; the songs aren't as inspired as past works and just kind of plod along. I've never been fond of David Vincent's vocals on this record; there's something about his delivery that just fucking makes some of these songs irritating as hell, and it doesn't help that he's mixed in really fucking loudly. Some of the songs, like "Eyes to See..." are listenable, but stuff like "Caesar's Palace" tries too hard to go back to Blessed Are the Sick, only not as good, and "Hatework" is fucking abominable. Seriously, if it wasn't for like half of
Illud Divinum Insanus, i'd still be calling it Morbid Angel's worst song. It's bloated, it's aimless, directionless, and just a fucking dissapointing conclusion to the album.
Also, the production is way too 'bright' for lack of a better descriptor. There's something about the way the drums come off, in particular that just saps the life out of the sound. The plus sides are that about half of the songs are pretty damn good (I didn't factor in the instrumentals, because they go nowhere), and they're pretty well executed. But it's really flawed compared to what Morbid Angel did before and what they would do afterward... but it's not a bad album for what it is whenever i'm in the mood for it.
), Moulded Flesh, Slow Death, Thanatos ( Thanatos transformed into Trauma, they've recorded two demos as Thanatos, I like those demos much more than stuff recorded as Trauma), Betrayer, and polish Soulless, their Total Desecration album is Sick ! 
), seems like the new one really got me back into it, so I kept listening to all their full lengths and also The TOMB Within EP, very good stuff of course ! I still have this Undying preference for Mental Funeral, I just can't get enough of it no matter how many times I listen to it. To me it represents the true essence of Death Metal, it's raw, dirty and dark. Perfect for my tastes. 
