Kev Rowland Behemoth have been punishing the ears of the masses for more than 30 years, with the trio of Nergal (vocals, guitars), Inferno (drum, percussion, orchestrations samples) and Orion (bass, vocals, keyboards, samples) coming together in time for 2004’s ‘Demigod’ and have not looked back since. Over the last decade there have been quite a few live releases, and this is only their third full-length studio album in more than a decade, but what they have lacked in quantity they have more than made up for in quality. In some ways they have become more mainstream, but perhaps that is because the rest of the world is catching up with them, and there is no doubt there are elements of Dimmu Borgir here and there in their more symphonic black metal moments, while to my ears there is no doubt this is a powerful continuation on from 2022’s ‘Opvs Contra Natvram’. Some reviewers were not huge fans of that one, but I felt it was one of their finest albums for years, and here we find again a band who are continuing to move and not stand still while continuing to do their best to pummel us into the future.

It is polished and controlled, and credit must be given to Jens Bogren for the work he has undertaken on the final mix as it loses none of its power but there is real clarity and distinction in the layers. Is this my favourite Behemoth album yet? Hard to say, and difficult to assess when a band has been around as long as this one and have released so many important albums, but what I can say is that here we have a group of guys who are showing no sign at all of slowing down, and are still as hungry as when they released their debut 30 years ago. Some may despair of the rawness of the days of yore, but people grow and change and there is no doubt here is a black metal album delivered by a band who still really mean it.

UMUR "Songs of Last Resort" is the tenth full-length studio album by Swedish thrash metal act The Haunted. The album was released through Century Media Records in May 2025. It´s the successor to "Strength in Numbers" from 2017 and there have been no lineup changes since the predecessor, making "Songs of Last Resort" the third The Haunted album in a row with a steady lineup.

Compared to the two preceding releases which featured relatively similar music styles combining thrash metal, groove metal, and melodic death metal elements, "Songs of Last Resort" leans a bit more heavily on the thrash metal side of the band´s sound, although the album still features elements from both groove metal and melodic death metal. Album opener "Warhead" is a crushingly heavy and fast-paced thrash metal song and it sets the tone and the standard for the remaining part of the album. The Haunted have audibly changed towards a more sharp and aggressive music style, which is a real treat if you´re fans of the band´s late 90s/early 00s releases like "Made Me Do It" (2000) and "One Kill Wonder" (2003). "Songs of Last Resort" is of course the work of a more mature band and Ola Englund´s (who joined The Haunted in 2013) guitar solos add the occasional more melodic touch to the otherwise relentlessly aggressive thrash metal assault.

The generally faster pace, fierce energy, and increased aggression of The Haunted´s music are welcome after two albums which were maybe a bit too mature and safe in sound and style. "Songs of Last Resort" is The Haunted letting loose and returning to their more savage and gnarly past and it suits them well. In a stream of consciousness it slipped my tongue in my review of "Strength in Numbers" that The Haunted were past their prime, and while that may still be true to some extent, it´s not heard on "Songs of Last Resort" which is through and through a high quality release featuring a powerful, detailed, and heavy sounding production job, high level performances from all involved (it´s probably the best vocal performance I´ve yet heard from Marco Aro), and some effective and powerful songwriting. I appreciate it when artists tell me to shut my music critic mouth with a brilliant return to form, and that´s exactly what The Haunted have done here. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Suffering with a Smile" is the debut full-length studio album by Danish death metal act Rohan. The album was independently released in January 2025. Rohan is a one-man project featuring former Eciton and Jeel lead vocalist/guitarist Thomas Berg, who handles all instruments, programming, and vocals on "Suffering with a Smile". An essential but not well known Danish death metal musician Berg started his musical journey in 1993 in the Copenhagen suburb Virum and played in local death metal band JegErEnLampe which changed their name to JEEL before releasing their debut full-length studio album "Dying Dreams" in 1996. JEEL released their second full-length studio album "As Morning Turns to Day" in 1999 but disbanded after a few years of inactivity. Berg then joined Eciton in 2004 and has been an active member on several releases. Berg has among other things also composed a heavy metal football anthem for his local club Lyngby Boldklub.

Stylistically the material on the 11 tracks, 38:58 minutes long album is in a style of death metal which combines elements of old school death metal with more contemporary songwriting ideas. The vocals vary from growling, to screaming, to shouting (often doubled), and even some semi-clean vocals. The programmed drums are the least interesting feature of the music, and they are wisely placed low in the mix. They are not terrible but they don´t add anything to the music either. They are just there to carry the riffs and the vocals forward. It´s definitely a death metal release where the vocals are the dominant focus in the soundscape.

Upon conclusion "Suffering with a Smile" is a decent quality first release from Rohan. It´s relatively standard for the genre both in terms of the quality and the songwriting style, and in that respect it doesn´t stand out much from a lot of other contemporary releases which also combine the old school death metal sound with a slightly more technical and varied contemporary sound, but it´s overall a good quality release and a 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

arcane-beautiful Even In Arcadia by Sleep Token is a great move into more mainstream territory for the mysterious project. The rollout of singles on this album and the campaigning was perfect, but when it comes to the finished project, it does start to verve into predictable song formats. But while the ending does show more experimenting promise, the real clincher of this album is the production, performances and lyrics. While not overall being a thrill ride, the quality of material is fantastic with great creative choices throughout with pristine glimmer. On this album Vessel is more comfortable with his own voice, possibly linking to the concepts and themes, overall creating a great almost cinematic narrative. Great mix of styles proving that these guys deserve the attention that they have been currently getting. Lyrically the album is perfect, with great use of language and imagery. While not as grabbing as their previous album, this is still a great follow up and by far no slouch. I'd give this a low to mid 8 out of 10.

UMUR "Parasomnia" is the fifteenth full-length studio album by US progressive metal act Dream Theater. The album was released through InsideOut Music in February 2025. It´s the successor to "A View from the Top of the World" from 2021. There´s been one lineup change since the predecessor as original drummer Mike Portnoy has returned to the fold replacing Mike Mangini, who had held Portnoy´s seat warm since 2011, where Portoy left to concentrate on other projects. Although the split with Mangini was amicable, he was in fact fired to make room for Portnoy´s return.

Portnoy was always much more than "just" the drummer in Dream Theater as an integral part of the songwriting team and the production team, and also as one of the most active band members when it came to media interviews, and his return to Dream Theater has made huge waves on the progressive metal scene. "Parasomnia" has as a result been an even more highly anticipated new release from Dream Theater than usual (and it´s not like every Dream Theater album before this one haven´t been met with almost hysterical level fan expectations and media attention). They are indeed the most well known and respected progressive metal band in the world...

Stylistically "Parasomnia" is one of the darker and heavier releases in Dream Theater´s discography along with albums like "Awake" (1994) and "Train of Thought" (2003). But albums like "Metropolis, Part 2: Scenes From a Memory" (1999) and "Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence" (2002) are valid references too if you want something from the band´s past to compare "Parasomnia" to. It´s like the band have consciously looked back at their turn-of-the-century albums and have found inspiration there for this album. At this point James LaBrie doesn´t sing that many really high notes though and it´s probably a good idea that Dream Theater have composed the material to accommodate LaBrie´s voice. He can still sing and he has a distinct sounding voice, which suits Dream Theater´s sound well, but age and years of touring the world have taken a toll on his ability to hit the high notes (which is audible when you attend a Dream Theater concert these days). While it´s not LaBrie´s fault, it doesn´t help make the vocal part of "Parasomnia" more interesting and varied if you compare it to some of the band´s earlier releases, but of course that´s been a tendency for now many albums, so it shouldn´t come as a surprise to anyone.

Other than that Dream Theater are as well playing as ever. Four virtuoso instrumentalists in the same band writing and playing complex progressive metal is always worth the price of admission, but honestly the incredible musicianship doesn´t mask the fact that the songwriting could need some focus and attention. Even better an outside producer would be nice at this point (guitarist John Petrucci is again credited for producing), weeding out some of the less interesting parts and making the band focus on and develop upon some of the amazing songwriting ideas this album also features. While songs like "Night Terror" and "Midnight Messiah" are immediately catchy and memorable, it takes quite some time to get familiar with the remaining material, because it´s either not as hook laden or sometimes have a tendency to wander off into noodly territory, which of course is what we expect from Dream Theater, but it often feels like the technical playing isn´t a means to an end (read: an integral part of the composition), but just there because the band knows that this is what the fans expect.

The sound production is overall well sounding, heavy, and detailed, and it´s not surprising to learn that Andy Sneap is responsible for mixing and mastering "Parasomnia". There´s a heavy metallic tone to the album, which suits the material well. Upon conclusion "Parasomnia" is an album which leaves me biased when rating it. On one hand it´s probably exactly what most Dream Theater fans expected and wanted, but as a more casual fan it would have been nice if Portnoy´s return had brought some of the 1990s Dream Theater greatness with it...but it really doesn´t. This is just another high quality progressive metal release from Dream Theater in a long line of relatively similar sounding but still high quality post-2000 releases from the band. The only time they´ve truly challenged themselves since the early 2000s was with the release of "The Astonishing" (2016), but I guess the fan reactions (mine included) to that album made them think twice about ever experimenting with their core sound again.

While my review may come off as a bit harsh and negative, it should not be misunderstood as if I don´t think "Parasomnia" is a high quality release, because it certainly is. The dream/nightmare lyrical themes which grace all tracks on the album is also well thought out and implemented, and when all is said and done "Parasomnia" is overall a strong release from Dream Theater. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Democracy" is the debut full-length studio album by US, South Carolina metal act The Deboning Method. The album was independently released in 1993. It´s probably not a band or a release which many people have heard of, but if you look at the lineup you´ll notice that a certain Derek Roddy is credited for playing the drums. The Deboning Method formed in 1988 and it´s Roddy´s first band. Roddy subsequently went on to play with artists like Malevolent Creation, Aurora Borealis, Blotted Science, Council of the Fallen, and Hate Eternal (among others). Roddy also auditioned for and was in the run for being the new Dream Theater drummer when Mike Portnoy left in 2011 (a spot which ultimately went to Mike Mangini).

...in other words The Deboning Method is graced with one of the top drummers on the scene and not surprisingly the drumming on "Democracy" is one of the great assets of the album. Stylistically the material on the 11 tracks, 55:26 minutes long album is an aggressive type of thrash metal with both death metal and hardcore elemnts. It´s both fast-paced and crushingly heavy and groove laden, so this is not old school 80s influenced thrash metal, but rather a heavier and more brutal version. Artists like Solstice and Ripping Corpse are valid references. Lead vocalist Jason Skipper sounds pissed and his delivery is commanding and fierce. There´s a savage, brutal, and almost hysterical edge to his singing style, which is highly effectful. You´re never in doubt that he means business.

The sound production values are overall effective and the music sounds powerful, heavy, and meaty, but sometimes it´s sounds like the tracks were recorded at different studios, which is slightly distracting and not a plus in my book. When listening to an album you want to get a feeling of cohesion. The Deboning Method are successful in achieving that with the consistency of the materal, but the slight drop in sound production values on a few tracks just sounds a bit amaturish.

When that is said "Democracy" is still a high quality brutal thrash metal release from The Deboning Method. Although at this moment "Democracy" is the band´s only full-length studio album, it´s interesting to note that The Deboning Method never disbanded. They have just been inactive for many years, but they have sporadically re-appeared, and they have also recorded and released a couple of minor releases in the 2010s (mainly re-recordings of early releases). "Democracy" may not be a high profile release, but for fans of brutal thrash metal it´s a recommended listen and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "The Headless Children" is the fourth full-length studio album by US heavy metal act W.A.S.P. The album was released through Capitol Records in April 1989. It´s the successor to "Inside the Electric Circus" from November 1986 and features one lineup change since the predecessor as drummer Steve Riley has been replaced by former Quiet Riot drummer Frankie Banali.

"The Headless Children" marks a change in musical direction, as it features more serious lyrical content, and isn´t as focused on explicit sexual themed lyrics and lyrics about the rock´n´roll life as the lyrics on the first three albums. Political and social issues are now dealt with bringing a more mature element to W.A.S.P.´s sound. Some tracks also feature a darker and heavier songwriting approach which suits the rawness of Blackie Lawless voice well (tracks like "The Heretic (The Lost Child)" and "The Headless Children"). The construction of the songs is predominantly vers/chorus based, but W.A.S.P. have created more memorable riffs than before and the album features some pretty brilliant lead guitar work throughout. I can´t say Banali´s drumming is especially accomplished to my ears (it´s simple and doesn´t help the songs flow), but maybe it´s just his drumming style which I don´t agree with.

"The Real Me" (a cover of The Who) and the power ballad "Forever Free" are the most well known tracks from "The Headless Children", but it´s a good quality release throughout, featuring well written and memorable material.

Other than the great lead guitar playing (courtesy of Chris Holmes), the voice and vocal delivery by Lawless are the standouts of the performances on "The Headless Children". He has such a raw, intense and commanding way of singing, that it´s impossible not to feel awe when listening to him. "The Headless Children" also features a relatively well sounding production job (the drums could have prospered from less reverb effects), and upon conclusion it´s a pretty strong release from W.A.S.P. Fans of the early releases will still enjoy this but listeners who didn´t enjoy the first three albums, may actually also find that they can discover something to appreciate here. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Funeral Serenade" is the second full-length studio album by Brazilian thrash metal act Sextrash. The album was released through Cogumelo Records in September 1992. It´s the successor to "Sexual Carnage" from 1990. Sextrash was founded in 1987 by former Sarcófago drummer D.D. Crazy under the Insulter monicker but soon changed their name to Sextrash. They released the "XXX" EP in 1989 and their debut full-length studio album "Sexual Carnage" in 1990. Both releases featuring some pretty controversial cover artworks. Although "Funeral Serenade" also features a naked lady on the cover, the artwork is a bit more cartoonish and innocent.

While the two first releases by Sextrash features a raw, primitive, and savage sounding type of thrash metal, the band have added an additional death metal element to their sound on "Funeral Serenade". Given the major success of fellow countrymen Sepultura who followed a similar path, it´s not a strange move, and a move many other contemporary Brazilian thrash metal artists also made.

The band write some pretty effective, powerful, and also relatively varied tracks, and that´s the greatest asset of "Funeral Serenade". The playing is a bit sloppy/amaturish and the sound production lacks power and also belongs in the slightly amaturish end of the scale, but it´s not worse than the sound productions on many other Brazilian death- and thrash metal releases from that time. Had the performances been stronger and the sound production been sharp, detailed, and powerful, "Funeral Serenade" could have been a high quality release. As it is now it may hold some interest for fans of late 80s Sepultura and similar death/thrash artists, but you shouldn´t expect anything of the same quality as the output of their more famous countrymen. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

martindavey87 Released in 2017, ‘We the People’ is the third studio album by American groove metal band Adrenaline Mob. Following on from previous outings, it’s full of massive-sounding, energetic, fist-pumping anthems of a very high standard. While the band was originally considered a supergroup when they first formed (they still are, somewhat…), it’s pretty obvious by this point that the core of the band is vocalist Russell Allen (of Symphony X fame), and guitarist Mike Orlando.

Not that that’s a bad thing, as these two have fantastic writing chemistry. Orlando’s absolutely furious guitar playing is insane, and Allen has one of the most incredible voices ever. Sounding extremely “metal”, yet able to drop emotion in on a whim, both of their styles fit really well.

As for the music, yeah, it’s pretty similar to everything they’ve released before, but why fix what isn’t broken? It’s heavy, groovy and melodic, and an amazing production gives it the massive, beefy sound that it deserves. Highlights include ‘King of the Ring’, ‘Raise ‘Em Up’, ‘We the People’, ‘The Killer’s Inside’, ‘Bleeding Hands’ and ‘Chasing Dragons’, but, to be honest, the whole album is just brimming with bangers, and each track flows into the next effortlessly.

Overall, ‘We the People’ is another fantastic record by one of the most underrated metal bands of the 2010’s. Everything about this album, from the songs, the production, even the artwork and the imagery, all fall perfectly into place, and if you like your music heavy (and you’d better, if you’re listening to this), then this is definitely an album worth owning.

UMUR "Promo Tape '92" is the third demo recording by Finnish death metal act Mordicus. The demo was independently released in 1992. It follows the release of the June 1991 "Grown Under Shade of Sorrow" demo. Seven tracks were recorded during the sessions, but only four were included on this demo. "Promo Tape '92" was not sold in large numbers by Mordicus, who instead opted to concentrate on sending the promo tape to labels. Wild Rags Records eventually got a copy of the demo, and offered Mordicus a deal to release the full session (all seven tracks) as the "Wrathorn" tape only label demo.

Stylistically the material on "Promo Tape '92" is the natural continuation of the Carcass influenced death metal also found on the "Grown Under Shade of Sorrow" demo. It´s obvious that Mordicus have grown as musicians and composers though, and the sound production values are also even better than they were on the already well produced "Grown Under Shade of Sorrow" demo. While the Carcass influence is undeniably very strong, Mordicus still manage to put their own melancholic Finnish touch to the songs, which all feature slow- or mid-paced parts with melancholic or morbid lead guitar work and even a whiff of epic ethnic folk melodies. The latter is heard on the opening minute of "A Thorn in Holy Flesh", where I´m immediately reminded of Amorphis. Early Paradise Lost is another influence heard here and there.

So, it´s fair to say that Mordicus have created a rather unique sounding release which combines the brutality and rawness of death metal and goregrind with the epic and melancholic atmosphere of death-doom metal. It´s quite the fascinating hybrid sound, which really shouldn´t work, but somehow Mordicus manage to seamlessly combine the elements of their sound in a natural way. Upon conclusion "Promo Tape '92" is another positive evolutionary step in the formative years of Mordicus' career, and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is fully deserved.

UMUR "Grown Under Shade of Sorrow" is the second demo recording by Finnish death metal act Mordicus. The demo was independently released in June 1991. It´s the successor to the January 1991 "Abominations of the Earth" demo.

If you´re familiar with "Abominations of the Earth" it´s interesting to note that Mordicus in a few months went from being heavily influenced by Autopsy, Death, and early Paradise Lost, to aquiring a heavy dose of Carcass influence on "Grown Under Shade of Sorrow" (the two vocalists deep juicy growling/higher pitched raw snarling approach and all...). There is still the occasional melancholic death-doom metal section in the music, but it´s arguably the "Symphonies of Sickness" (1989) influence which is the most dominant influence on the musical direction on "Grown Under Shade of Sorrow". Contemporary Finnish death metal acts like Xysma, Disgrace, and Lubricant also looked in the directon of "Symphonies of Sickness" for influence, so it´s safe to say that Carcass had a huge impact on the Finnish death metal scene of the late 80s/early 90s.

Mordicus combine their Carcass influenced deathgrinding sections with heavy groove laden death metal parts and the aforementioned melancholic death-doom metal moments, so "Grown Under Shade of Sorrow" is quite the varied demo considering that it´s an early 90s death metal demo. If the songwriting was promsing and interesting on "Abominations of the Earth", "Grown Under Shade of Sorrow" more than fulfills that promise, although the Carcass influence is maybe a bit too obvious.

While "Abominations of the Earth" was more or less an advanced rehearsal room demo (recorded on a 4-track recorder), "Grown Under Shade of Sorrow" was recorded at a professional recording studio with a recording engineer (Jukka Timonen) and it´s a huge improvement in sound quality and listening enjoyment over the first demo. It´s still obviously a demo recording, but this time around you´re able to hear all instruments and vocals clearly in the mix and it´s overall a both powerful, raw, and brutal sounding demo. To my ears "Grown Under Shade of Sorrow" is a seminal Finnish death metal demo and a 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.

martindavey87 Originally released in 1993, ‘Live Shit: Binge & Purge’ is an audio and visual tour de force of live music by Metallica. During the absolute peak of their world tour for 1991’s ‘Metallica’, they released a monstrous box set featuring three different concerts, two on video (later DVD, thankfully) and one on three CD’s.

Having become worldwide megastars with their 1991 self-titled release, the band would go on to tour the world, multiple times for over a staggering three years. Which brings us to the CD’s and the first DVD; the live album part of it is from a show in Mexico City, whilst the DVD is of a similar show from San Diego. Both concerts are fantastic, with excellent performances, sound, and in the case of the DVD, great picture. However, one major downside is the endless “noodling” and messing around between songs.

Yeah, it’s come to be expected, and is pretty harmless enough, but there’s so many random solo spots, messing around, jams, and countless other bits of shameless banter, that after a while, it does wear a bit thin. At one point, there’s 20 minutes of tomfoolery before they start another song, and during ‘Seek and Destroy’ James interacts with the crowd for over ten minutes. It’s fun at first, but after repeated listens, it does get quite boring fast.

Then there’s the second DVD, filmed in Seattle and taken from the bands 1989 tour in support of ‘…And Justice For All’, and this is a fantastic concert. This was a great time for the band as they were still “on the way up”. The playing is incredibly tight, the sound and picture are excellent, especially given the age of the footage, and with a great set list to boot, this random addition to the box set makes it totally worthwhile.

Everyone performs brilliantly on all three concerts. Even Lars, bless him, far from the best drummer in the world, but his boundless enthusiasm and excitement is infectious, and Jason Newsted’s copious amounts of energy makes me sad for how things turned out for him. With around nine hours of content, ‘Live Shit…’ is certainly not for the faint of heart, but overall, any detriments aside, this is an absolute beast of a box set, and truly belongs in every Metallica fans collection.

UMUR "Abominations of the Earth" is the first demo recording by Finnish death metal act Mordicus. The demo was independently released in January 1991. Mordicus formed in 1989 in the town of Joensuu situated on the eastern Finnish border to Russia. Some members came from the thrash metal band Mortuary, but Mordicus was formed with the idea to write more brutal music, which wasn´t an unusual move for young bands of the era, who had picked up on the new brutal death metal sounds coming from the death metal scenes of the US, the UK, and Sweden.

"Abominations of the Earth" is arguably a pure old school death metal release, with only the genre´s usual nods towards brutal thrash metal, so Mordicus did reach their goal with this debut demo. The songwriting is quite interesting and unique featuring elements from artists like Autopsy, Death, and early Paradise Lost. The vocals are gurgling raw snarling rather than deep growling, but the vocal part of the demo is generally quite effective and raw.

The demo was recorded on a 4-track recorder and it´s a pretty lo-fi sounding release, but it´s not without its raw and primitive charm. Mordicus are relatively well playing for a young band, but "Abominations of the Earth" is a warts and all type of release, and sometimes the instruments sound a bit out of tune and there are a few playing mistakes here and there. I can live with that on a debut demo because of the intriguing and promising songwriting though. This is definitely a band with a lot of interesting songwriting ideas and although I´d overall call "Abominations of the Earth" more interesting than great, I appreciate this demo more than my 2.5 star (50%) rating may show.

UMUR "Demo 1992" is the second demo recording by Finnish death metal/grindcore act Lifeless Vomit. The demo was independently released in February 1992. Lifeless Vomit formed in 1988 and released two demos prior to disbanding in 1992 (the first demo was released in 1991). All material from the two demos plus an unreleased demo from 2013 were compiled on the "Entrails on the Floor, Rock-Roller at the Door / Rugged Fish-Beard Walks Without Hooks" compilation album and released in March 2020 through Old Skull Productions.

Stylistically the material on the 17 tracks, 15:11 minutes long demo is in some ways a continuation of the filthy death metal/grindcore style of the preceding demo. This demo is a bit more on the grindcore side though and the death metal elements have been toned down. Lifeless Vomit are down to a trio and they are still a well playing band with a nice domimant distorted bass and some tight drumming. Drummer Juha Merilaakso is also the vocalist and he delivers one sick vocal style after another. It´s some pretty nasty stuff and I´d say "Scum" (1987)-era Napalm Death mixed with "Acts of the Unspeakable" (1992)-era Autopsy blended with a bit of goregrind Carcass isn´t the worst description I can come up with.

The sound production is decent although a bit thin sounding, but the sound production values suit the material well. To my ears the first demo was a bit more interesting because the death metal elements of the band´s sound were more equally shared with the grindcore part of the music, while "Demo 1992" tend to hammer away in a relatively monotone grindcore style. It´s still an interesting release though and a 2.5 star (50%) rating isn´t all wrong.

UMUR "Demo )91(" is the first demo recording by Finnish death metal/grindcore act Lifeless Vomit. The demo was independently released in My 1991. Lifeless Vomit formed in 1988 and released two demos prior to disbanding in 1992. All material from the two demos plus an unreleased demo from 2013 were compiled on the "Entrails on the Floor, Rock-Roller at the Door / Rugged Fish-Beard Walks Without Hooks" compilation album and released in March 2020 through Old Skull Productions.

The 12 tracks on the 12:56 minutes long demo are stylistically a combination of death metal and grindcore. Sometimes leaning more towards one than the other and other times the other way around. Lifeless Vomit are pretty well playing and other than the punked clean vocals on opening track "Harsh Boar", the vocals are quite well performed growling or harsh screaming. The über distorted bass is quite the treat as well as the well playing drummer (who is also the vocalist). The songs are quite creative considering that Lifeless Vomit is a quartet and there aren´t any lead guitar parts. It´s just drums, bass, guitars, and some nasty juicy growling (two vocalists).

The nature of the lyrics may have you think that this is not a serious release (songtitles like "Harsh Boar", "Horrendous Fuck of Hate", and "Sickly Shellfish" don´t exactly reek of anything serious), but to my ears the music is of a high quality. Lifeless Vomit understand how to use the tools of the trade and the material on this demo is some pretty interesting gory death metal/grindcore. The sound production is filthy, oddly thin sounding, but still heavy, and it suits the material perfectly. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.