Sunday, May 8, 2016

Bandcamp Pick - Abnormality, VHS, Fister/TEETH, Nucleus



There are few things I've been looking forward to as much as the sophomore album by MA's Abnormality - and thankfully it doesn't disappoint. Their first release for Metal Blade, Mechanisms of Omniscience is transcendent - a showcase of brutality, technicality and riffcraft that will drive fans of Suffocation, Cryptopsy and Origin into a frenzy. The next big thing in American death metal. [$9.99]



I was also eager to see where DoC friends TEETH would go from their commendable debut. On this new split EP from Broken Limbs, the band continue down the path of making death metal as unsettling and dischordant as possible. That makes them an interesting foil for Fister, whose own sludgy contribution comes with a dose of melody that makes it almost uplifting. A trilogy that raises you up only to drag you back down screaming. [ $3]



Grab some Jolt Cola and load up on karo syrup for the first full-length by DoC friends VHS. As per its title, Screaming Mad Gore is horror-themed thrashing death metal, strongly indebted to early Death but with a punk-like commitment to fun and brevity. More gleeful mayhem than a Troma marathon. [$8 CAD]



Sci-fi death metal gets a labyrinthine update courtesy of Colorado's Nucleus. Sentient is the Voivod/Immolation mash up you never knew you needed, combining the jagged rhythms of the former with the lurching riffs of the latter. A bright light on the prog/death horizon. [$6]