Impaled
Mondo Medicale
Necropolis / Deathvomit
Banned in 84 countries? Surely not! Are they that afraid of a band that names their guitar solos after various injuries? I, on the other hand, love bands that name their guitar solos, AND take a healthy interest in the music of Carcass. There is nothing at all wrong in appropriating the Carcass aesthetic – it’s time for the New Wave of New Carcass! The CarcassClash Movement! Get The Face and Vogue on the phone!
Actually, Mondo Medicale combines that advanced post-mortem Carcass grind with the scatological murder-junkie thrills of Abscess for a whole lot of fucking fun. “The Hippocritic Oath” has a great sample of a surgeon ranting on about how the gravely ill and infirm should all be killed. Ouch! It’s accompanied by some brutal mid-paced grind. These boys are good. Impaled almost have the Jeff Walker/Bill Steer vocal dynamic down perfectly. The higher vocals sound exactly like Walker’s rasps, while the lower vocals sound a little more disturbed if possible, like there’s a membrane or tiny feelers obstructing the mouth. “Dead Inside” takes perfect advantage of that vocal attack. “Raise The Stakes” is a collage of the better elements of “Symphonies Of Sickness” – including some emotive soloing, blast beats overlaid with catchy riffing, and constantly shifting tempos. The sampled screaming during the mosh bit in the middle is especially appreciated.
The opening riff of “Operating Theatre” is so violent and hostile. I love it! Would be curious to see this one performed live. Thunders along unhindered, abetted by the Bill Steer vocals. The grindcore blast sections make you miss that groove. I wouldn’t worry too much though, soon they’ll be at the point Carcass were at when they decided to ditch the blast beats and concentrate totally on nauseous riffs and melodies. Ewwww, what’s that gnawing sound at the start of “The Worms Crawl In”? Worms are goddamn gross when used correctly. And that line about “human incubator”! Holy fuck, combine that with a chorus of “The worms crawl in/The worms crawl out,” and I’m squirming. There’s some buried synths in here, just to further the cinematic dread.
I’m certain that “Rest In Faeces” makes censors’ hearts flutter with delight. It starts with a delightful section owing somewhat to Jeff Walker’s performance on “Corporeal Jigore Quandary,” with all players locked together on a sinister thundergroove. The “Bring Out the Dead” solo, accompanied by some great rhythm work, is incredible. Riff after riff is thrown out with callous disregard. And there=EDs a neato sicky operation scene at the end. I don’t wanna give anything away. “Carpe Mortem” mines a more eerie vein – sounds like the perfect idyll to run the credits of this horror movie over, accompanied by a lingering shot of guts a-plenty, I’ll wager.
How about this, I’ll send you guys a medical dictionary and ten copies of Necroticism: Descanting the Insolubrious for Christmas, and then, oh my god, you’ll make 84 countries seem like child’s play.
Necropolis Records: http://www.necropolisrecs.com
