When was the last time you heard a great British death metal band? Lest you think it's all folklore and dress up in the Isles, Unfathomable Ruination unleash a torrent of brutality with no small amount of slam thrown in. Some silly bass-drops aside, this is commendable stuff. By Cryptopsy/Suffocation fans for Cryptopsy/Suffocation fans.
I'm tempted to call Boston's Abnormality "Cannibal Corpse without the misogyny" - I'd probably get away with it too, if only because their singer is a woman. Contaminating the Hive Mind closely follows CC's template, with strong overtones of newer bands like Origin and Abysmal Dawn. Tight, fast, and unrelenting, this is the way death metal should be. Is it too early to start hailing the New Wave of American Death Metal?
Nasum are gone but not forgotten; least of all by Stockholm's Afgrund, who've learned an important lesson on how to craft hook-heavy grindcore. Despite its title, The Age of Dumb is a right smart lesson in grind supremacy.
Masachist, from Poland, bear more than a passing resemblance to Decapitated - perhaps unsurprising, considering singer Pig (formerly Sauron) and bassist Heinrich are former members of Decapitated. Blasting and technical but never overwhelmingly so, Scorned is a reminder of what made the Polish scene so exciting a decade ago - and clearly there are some embers left in that fire.
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