UMUR "Damned and Mummified" is the 4th full-length studio album by US death metal act Abscess. The album was released through Red Stream, Inc. in October 2004. It´s the successor to "Through the Cracks of Death" from 2002 and features one lineup change as bassist Joe Allen is back in the fold. Allen temporarily left Abscess in 2000 but returned in 2002. He did not perform on "Through the Cracks of Death" though, where the bass tracks were recorded by the other three members of the band.

Stylistically the material on "Damned and Mummified" features very few surprises if you are already familiar with the preceding releases and Abscess old school death metal sound with hardcore/punk leanings. Abscess formed after Autopsy split-up in the mid-90s and is pretty much a continuation of that band, but with a little more emphasis on hardcore/punk elements. This is still filthy, gory/horror lyric drenched old school death metal delivered in the most raw and organic manner possible. Sometimes on the verge of sounding noisy and chaotic, and often taken down to a heavy, brutal, doomy crawl. Lead vocalist/drummer Chris Reifert has always been an aquired taste, with his completely over the top brutal and asylum bound (yet intelligible) growling vocals. Personally I think he is one of the greatest death metal vocalists on the scene and his delivery is both passionate, convincing, and varied.

"Through the Cracks of Death (2002)" featured a rather thin sounding production job, which unfortunately meant it didn´t have the impact it could have had, but thankfully the sound production on "Damned and Mummified" is stronger. It´s a raw, brutal, and organic sounding production, which suits the material perfectly. Abscess are well playing too and upon conclusion "Damned and Mummified" is a good quality death metal release. Granted Abscess sound a little stagnated at this point, but they do what they do with conviction. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Through the Cracks of Death" is the 3rd full-length studio album by US death metal act Abscess. The album was released through Peaceville Records in May 2002. It´s the successor to "Tormented" from 2000 and features one lineup change as bassist Joe Allen temporarily stepped out of the band from 2000-2002 and didn´t rejoin in time for the recording sessions. The bass tracks were therefore recorded by the other three members of Abscess (who recorded three to four tracks each).

Abscess was formed by former members of Autopsy and Hexx. Especially the former was quite the prolific act on the early US death metal scene, but Abscess never reached more than underground recognition and struggled throughout their carrer to escape the shadow of Autopsy.

Stylistically the material on "Through the Cracks of Death" continue the raw and filthy old school gore/horrer themed death metal of "Tormented (2002)". Abscess still incorporate hardcore/punk influences, and there actually haven´t been much musical development between the two releases. There are other differences though, and it´s especially the two sound productions which are very different sounding. "Tormented (2002)" featured a dark, organic, and murky sound production, but "Through the Cracks of Death" features a less raw and also less organic sounding production job. Especially the drums feature a more dry and less heavy tone, which provide the material with a very different atmosphere from its direct predecessor.

To my ears the sound production unfortunately also means that "Through the Cracks of Death" is a step down in quality from "Tormented (2002)". It´s simply a less interesting album to listen to and it is in large part due to a sound production which doesn´t do the material justice. There are still several great death metal tracks on "Through the Cracks of Death" (I for example really enjoy "Tomb of the Unknown Junkie") and although I ultimately prefer "Tormented (2002)" to this one, it doesn´t mean "Through the Cracks of Death" is a bad quality release. A 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Tormented" is the 2nd full-length studio album by US death metal act Abscess. The album was released through Listenable Records/Deathvomit Records in May 2000. It´s the successor to "Seminal Vampires and Maggot Men" from 1996 and features one lineup change since the predecessor as bassist Frank Migliore has been replaced by Joe Allen. Abscess recorded the material for the album at Sound Temple Studios, but the master tapes got lost, and they had to record the whole album again at a new studio, which could explain the long time between the release of "Seminal Vampires and Maggot Men (1996)" and "Tormented".

Stylistically the material on "Tormented" continue down the same filthy and raw old school death metal style as the band also played on "Seminal Vampires and Maggot Men (1996)". A minimalistic (often hardcore punk influenced), organic, dark and raw type of death metal featuring horror/gore lyrical themes. Most tracks on the 13 track, 33:49 minutes long album don´t exceed the 3 minutes mark and some are shorter, so it´s very much a to the point type of release. Chris Reifert has always been one of the most vile sounding growlers on the scene, sounding like he is coughing clots of blood while singing his depraved lyrics. His madman vocal style go hand in hand with the organic, raw, and unconventionally structured tracks. The instrumental part of the music is a combination of hardcore/punk influenced death metal riffs and rhythms, morbid sounding lead guitars, and heavy doomy sections (most prevalent on the 6:42 minutes long closing track "Madhouse at the End of the World", which is one of the very few long tracks on the album).

Abscess are an organic playing unit and there is a great almost improvised feeling to the music. The band are skilled musicians but they take great care to deliver the music in a primal raw playing style. "Tormented" features a dark, raw, and brutal sounding production, which suits the material perfectly. To my ears "Tormented" is a step up in quality from "Seminal Vampires and Maggot Men (1996)" (and also a bit more similar to the sound of late original-era Autopsy), and fans of filthy and raw old school death metal should find loads to love here. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Seminal Vampires and Maggot Men" is the debut full-length studio album by US death metal/punk act Abscess. The album was released through Relapse Records in September 1996. While "Seminal Vampires and Maggot Men" is the band´s official debut album, they already released the demo compilation album "Urine Junkies" in August 1995. Abscess more or less began as a side-project for some of the members of Autopsy, but as it became clear that Autopsy would disband, Abscess became their priority. On "Seminal Vampires and Maggot Men" the lineup consists of Chris Reifert (Vocals, Drums), Danny Coralles (Guitar), Frank Migliore (Bass) and Clint Bower (Vocals, Guitar). The three former had all been part of the last incarnation of Autopsy before the split-up and the latter came from a longer stint with Hexx.

"Seminal Vampires and Maggot Men" was recorded and mixed in 24 hours in May 1996, and the 18 tracks on the 32:06 minutes long album sounds just as rough and lo-fi produced as you could imagine considering the recording method. This is filthy and rather depraved punked death metal packed in a raw, noisy, and murky sound production. I´m not sure how many takes each track got or if there are any overdubs, but this sounds pretty close to being recorded live in the studio. If you think "Shitfun (1995)" by Autopsy was a filthy punky death metal release, just wait until you hear this one. The tracks are generally very simple, fast-paced, and aggressive featuring sloppy organic playing and insane snarling vocals and occasional growling. At times this is more an aggressive and filthy punk album than a filthy punked death metal ditto, but Abscess do occassionally take the pace down to a death/doomy sludge.

Song titles like "Naked Freak Show", "Freak Fuck Fest (Naked Freak Show II: Orgy of the Gaffed)", "I Don't Give a Fuck" and "The Scent of Shit", should provide you with a picture of the B-horror movie/zombie/sexually depraved lyrics contained within this package. Which of course is no surprise considering these guys past.

So "Seminal Vampires and Maggot Men" more or less succeed in what it sets out to do, which is deliver filthy punked death metal to the masses. What it neglects to do is to feature variation in the material. The few more death/doom oriented tracks provide the album with some diversity, but there are generally not many tracks on the album that stand out. Way too many of these tracks are over before you notice it, they sound too much the same, and they leave little impact other than the feeling that you´ve been defiled and stomped upon (which in this case is actually a great feeling). For greater lasting impact the tracks could have been more memorable. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Urine Junkies" is a compilation album by US death metal act Abscess. The compilation was released through Relapse Records in August 1995. "Urine Junkies" features the band´s first three demos, "Abscess (1994)", "Raw, Sick and Brutal Noize (1994)" (the track "Necroslut" is omitted) and "Crawled Up from the Sewer (1995)", presented in reverse-chronological order.

Abscess was formed in 1994, at a point where Autopsy was more or less at their end (they did manage to put out the "Shitfun (1995)" album before disbanding though), and features a couple of Autopsy members. Most notably lead vocalist/drummer Chris Reifert. "Shitfun (1995)" took a more punked direction than earlier material by Autopsy, while still staying rooted in old school US death metal and that direction is continued in Abscess.

The music on "Urine Junkies" is simple, filthy, brutal, raw and punked old school death metal. And that goes for the material from all three demos. While these are demos, they were all recorded in studios and feature a relatively good sound quality. The sound is raw and filthy but suits the music well. The lyrics revolve around the usual Chris Reifert gore themes and song titles like "Zombification", "Suicide Fuck", "Anally Impaled", and "The Scent of Shit" are no surprise. The delivery of the music is organic and raw and while the tracks aren´t always that memorable, they always pack a lot of punch. These guys really sound like they are enjoying themselves and that shines through and makes "Urine Junkies" a really charming release. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.