A.K.U. / False Faith - Horde of Black Metal Warriors ( 2020)

This is an split whose streamlined approach to BM suggests a controlled fury and hatred, a power that is cold and vile. Elegance and efficency aren't qualities that spring to mind when talking about BM, this split is 

A.K.U. is demoniac, and totally hateful, like a lunatic madly slamming himself against the walls of his cell. The production is high and scratchy. The guitars are shrill and droning. The drumming is very simplistic. The bass is only semi-audible, and the vox… are completely fucking insane. Spitting, screeching, roaring, sneering, the vocalist sounds like some sort of infernal creature inciting his followers to slaughter. 

False faith side of the split, begins with an incredibly menacing intro Then everything explodes. Whereas A.K.U. is shrill, chaotic and crushing, False Faith are more deliberate and methodical, and still crushing. They know exactly what they’re doing, and that just happens to be utterly destroying you. The production is much lower and murkier which works nicely.

35 minutes of undiluted hatred, fury, and chaos. Highly recommended.

abyssalproductions361.bandcamp.com

akuband.bandcamp.com

falsefaithbm.bandcamp.com

Review by Paul Caravasi

Fetid Zombie - Where Worms Crawl (2023)

 

...would be a more than accurate description for this masterpiece of absolute heinous death metal. It's both sharp and savage, tearing away at your face like a rabid pitbull. The guitars are sludgy as hell, Fetid Zombie is one of the most utterly METAL death metal bands nowadays. Every riff and lead break on this thing is an expertly crafted sledgehammer to face, drumming is an animalistic pounding menace, constantly mashing your skull with it's barbaric power, the rhythmic structures constantly shift to perfectly complement the riffage, always appropriate to the musical needs of the songs. And of course, no Fetid Zombie review would be complete without ranting about the vocals and lyrics. Conveyed as they are in an inhuman vomited bark, seriously pure gore and sickness here, covering all sorts of insane topics. Basically, if you like death metal, you need this. If you don't like it, you're a dick and would be better off listening to metalcore. "Where Worms Crawl" features 6 tracks of crushingly heavy DEATH METAL. Everything you could ever want out of a death metal album is here. And there are tons of guests...

Chris Monroy (SKELETAL REMAINS) 

Dawn Desiree' (AUTUMN TEARS) 

Dylan Jones (ROTTED) Steve Miller (LOCULUS)

Andrew Lee (RIPPED TO SHREDS) 

James Malone (ARSIS) 

Malcom Pugh (INFERI) 

Terrance Hobbs (SUFFOCATION) 

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED !!

fetidzombiedm.bandcamp.com

Review by Paul Caravasi

Fetid Zombie - Transmutations ( 2021)

If I had to describe Fetid Zombie with one word, that word would be "Unique". It's quite rare to see a band go through so many different phases, while still maintaining a very recognizable brutal-sound and a strong sense of identity. Transmutations is a very ambitious album that marks the transition from an interesting, nasty death metal act to full-fledged doom/death metal . It stays true to the band's brutal beginnings, while increasing the presence of some gothic elements and displaying stronger songwriting and a more proficient approach to song-arrangement. The album feels a lot more diverse than the debut thanks to the inclusion of more complexly structured tracks and melody. The songs flow incredibly well from section to section and feature many tempo changes and a refreshing dynamic diversity, it creates an atmosphere that is like no other, seamlessly blending menacing doomy death metal with some gentle female vocals as well and orchestral flourishes. From a production standpoint, Transmutations is still on the raw side of things, it works well when combined with the female vocals and orchestral parts. Much like the musicianship, the raw nature of the album's sound creates a very particular atmosphere. It captures a significant step in their evolution perfectly. It's an album that combined different musical styles in an organic and elegant and extreme. An absolutely essential listen!

fetidzombiedm.bandcamp.com/album/transmutations

Review by Paul Caravasi