UMUR "Fiend for Blood" is an EP release by US death metal act Autopsy. The EP was released through Peaceville Records in March 1992. "Fiend for Blood" bridges the gap between the two full-length studio albums "Mental Funeral (1991)" and "Acts of the Unspeakable (1992)".

That´s also clear when you listen to the 6 tracks on the 12:18 minutes long EP. The tracks are generally very short (ranging from 0:30 to just under 4 minutes in length), raw and filthy. The sound production is purposedly simple and murky, but suits the music well. All features that are more in line with the short and brutal tracks on "Acts of the Unspeakable (1992)" rather than the longer and more doomy death metal tracks on "Mental Funeral (1991)". The lyrics revolve around the usual bizarre blood´n´gore type themes which song titles like "Ravenous Freaks", "A Different Kind of Mindfuck" and "Dead Hole" are a testimony to.

While "Fiend for Blood" is definitely a quality raw and filthy type death metal release and Autopsy delivers their music with both passion and skill, I remember "Fiend for Blood" being the first release by the band, that didn´t immediately blow me away. Listening to the EP today, I still feel the same way about it. The tracks aren´t as memorable as the case was on "Mental Funeral (1991)" and to my ears it sounds more like the band had some leftover material and just enough studio time to commit it to tape, than something they had been working on for a longer period of time. Maybe an early sign of the more "laid back" attitude that a couple of the guys in the lineup would take with them to their next band Abscess. This is still Autopsy though and even a slightly disappointing release by them is better than most other releases by contemporary artists playing this style, so a 3.5 star (70%) rating is still deserved.