UMUR "Festering Flesh" is a reissue demo recording by German death metal act Fleshcrawl. The demo was released through Xtreem Music in July 2021. Fleshcrawl formed in 1987 as Morgöth, but changed their name to Suffocation and released a couple of demos under that monicker before changing their name one final time in 1991 to Fleshcrawl. "Festering Flesh" is a reissue of the second demo recording the band did in February 1991 while still called Suffocation, but now re-released under the Fleshcrawl monicker.

All four tracks from the 21:27 minutes long demo would be re-recorded and included on Fleshcrawl´s 1992 debut full-length studio album "Descend into the Absurd", which of course provides this reissue under the Fleshcrawl monicker with a bit more credibility. These are actual demo versions of songs which would later be Fleshcrawl material.

The quality of the recordings is decent but pretty raw and rough around the edges, which of course isn´t unusual for a 1991 death metal demo. They probably even cleaned it up a little, so the original probably sounds even more raw and lo-fi. Stylistically Suffocation/early Fleshcrawl were pretty interesting as they played both fast-paced brutal death metal but often also took their music down the doomy depths. The versions of these tracks found on "Descend into the Absurd" are arguably better recorded and a little more mature, but these demo versions are still worth a listen simply because this is some really good quality old school death metal. A 2.5 - 3 star (55%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Structures of Death" is the 8th full-length studio album by German death metal act Fleshcrawl. The album was released through Metal Blade Records in September 2007. It´s the successor to "Made of Flesh" from 2004 and features one lineup change compared to the predecessor as bassist Tobias Schick has been replaced by Nico Scheffler.

Stylistically the music on "Structures of Death" pretty much continue the old school death metal style of "Made of Flesh (2004)". It´s a death metal style which is strongly influenced by the early 90s Swedish scene and especially Dismember has been a huge influence on Fleshcrawl. The musicianship is strong with well played instrumental performances and a strong growling vocalist in front. You get exactly what you expect from listening to "Structures of Death", which means the trademark buzzing Swedish guitar tone, semi-melodic and more brutal guitar riffs, screaming and occasionally more melodic tinged guitar solos, a solid heavy rhythm section, and relatively intelligible growling yet still quite brutal vocals. This is old school death metal of the Swedish variant through and through.

The material are generally well written and to my ears slightly more catchy than the case has been on the last many releases. Fleshcrawl have almost always struggled to produce albums with more than a couple of standout tracks, and as a consequence most of their releases are solid and consistent in style, but also quite one-dimensional listens. They aren´t completely able to break that tendency on "Structures of Death", but there are more memorable tracks here than usual.

"Structures of Death" is well produced too, and upon conclusion it´s a good quality death metal release by Fleshcrawl. They aren´t exactly burning down the house or anything like that, but Fleshcrawl have managed to release a solid effort and fans of especially early 90s Swedish death metal should be able to find a lot to enjoy here. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Made of Flesh" is the 7th full-length studio album by German death metal act Fleshcrawl. The album was released through Metal Blade Records in February 2004. It´s the successor to "Soulskinner" from 2002. There´s been one lineup change since the predecessor as guitarist Stefan Hanus has been replaced by Oliver Grbavac.

Stylistically the material on "Made of Flesh" continue the old school death metal style of the previous releases by the band. It´s a style of music they´ve pretty much played since their second or third album (their debut album is vastly different sounding from the remainder of their output). The music is highly influenced by the Swedish scene and especially Dismember is a huge influence on Fleshcrawl´s sound. Sometimes to a point where they sound like a clone of their Swedish influence. Even the sound production sounds similar to the sound productions on some of Dismember´s releases. The buzzing Swedish guitar tone, the way the vocals are placed in the mix, and the way the rhythms are played.

As such the material are well written and pretty powerful death metal, and the album opens fairly strong with "Beneath a Dying Sun", and the quality of the material is pretty consistent throughout. Not many tracks stand out though, and it´s not more than a couple of tracks into the album before you realise that "Made of Flesh" is a bit of a one-dimensional affair. It´s well produced and well performed, but the compositions lack the final magic touch to elevate them above standard level for the genre. The whole clone situation isn´t a positive either, but at this point it´s almost useless to complain about, as it´s obviously a conscious choice by Fleshcrawl not to try and forge a more unique sound. A 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Soulskinner" is the 6th full-length studio album by German death metal act Fleshcrawl. The album was released through Metal Blade Records in January 2002. It´s the successor to "As Blood Rains From the Sky... We Walk the Path of Endless Fire" from 2000. There´s been one lineup change since the predecessor as bassist Tobias Schick has been added to the ranks (guitarist Mike Hanus played the bass parts on "As Blood Rains From the Sky... We Walk the Path of Endless Fire (2000)"). Since their inception Fleshcrawl have been exponents for old school death metal in it´s purest form and rest assure that nothing has changed on "Soulskinner".

...we´re still treated to straight forward old school death metal with brutal growling vocals (only few words stand out. The vocals are mostly unintelligible), crunchy downtuned riffing (the riffing often reminds me of Dismember both in sound and in style) and drumming that spans from blast beating, D-beat drumming, slower doomy rythms and mid-paced groovier beats. The band are very well playing and "Soulskinner" also features a really brutal and powerful sound production that suits the music well.

As such all of the above features should have ensured a really good ride if you are a fan of old school death metal, but unfortunately "Soulskinner" proves to be a somewhat one-dimensional affair. By the time I reach track 4 or 5 on the album I´m wondering when track number 2 ends and that´s a sign that the tracks lack memorable moments/hooks. I´m entertained while the album plays, but only remember very few moments from the album when it´s over. Now I expect old school death metal albums to be somewhat one-dimensional, because that´s sort of the premise of the genre and usually also a demand from the fans of that particular genre, but there still needs to be hooks to hold on too, for an album to stick and they are basically not present here. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "As Blood Rains From the Sky... We Walk the Path of Endless Fire" is the 5th full-length studio album by German death metal act Fleshcrawl. The album was released through Metal Blade Records in April 2000. It´s the successor to "Bloodred Massacre" from 1997.

Stylistically there haven´t been many changes in the three years between "Bloodred Massacre (1997)" and "As Blood Rains From the Sky... We Walk the Path of Endless Fire". The lineup is intact and the old school death metal style, which is strongly influenced by the early 90s Swedish scene and in particular Dismember, is also pretty much the same. It still baffles me how Fleshcrawl can sound more "Swedish" than many of the native Swedish artists do, but that´s how it is.

It´s safe to say Fleshcrawl aren´t the most unique sounding act, but the quality of the material on the 12 track, 39:51 minutes long album, is relatively high. It´s both well composed and effective. Crunching brutal guitar riffs, powerful drumming, and brutal growling vocals. The quality of the material is consistent, which means the album is enjoyable throughout. There aren´t many highlights to mention though, but I´d say a track like "As Blood Rains From the Sky" could be mentioned as one of the more standout tracks on the album.

"As Blood Rains From the Sky... We Walk the Path of Endless Fire" features a well sounding production (again...sounding very "Swedish"), which suits the material perfectly. The musicianship is also on a good level on all posts, so upon conclusion it´s a good quality old school death metal release. A 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is deserved.