UMUR "Corpus In Extremis: Analysing Necrocriticism" is the 2nd full-length studio album by Swedish goregrind/death metal act General Surgery. The album was released through Listenable Records in March 2009. General Surgery were originally active in the 1988-1991 period and released three demos and the "Necrology (1991)" EP before disbanding. The members have since been part of other prolific Swedish death metal and grindcore acts such as Dismember, Afflicted, Crematory and Regurgitate. General Surgery reformed again in the early 00s (although it was only guitarist Joachim "Jocke" Carlsson and lead vocalist Grant McWilliams who remained from the lineup who recorded the "Necrology (1991)" EP) and have been putting out a string of releases since 2003.

There have been two lineup changes since the release of the band´s debut full-length studio album "Left Hand Pathology" from 2006, as bassist Glenn Sykes has been replaced by Andreas Eriksson, and lead vocalist Grant McWilliams has been replaced by Erik Sahlström. McWilliams had been unstable for a while, and was in the end unable to continue with the band. In keeping with the pathology/Gore concept all band members are credited with the Dr. title.

Stylistically "Corpus In Extremis: Analysing Necrocriticism" pretty much continues where "Left Hand Pathology (2006)" left off. It´s (early) Carcass influenced goregrind/death metal performed by skilled musicians and featuring a well sounding production, which provides the listener with a better opportunity to hear what is going on, than what the late 80s/early 90s goregrind releases by artists like Carcass, Nuclear Death, and Impetigo could offer. "Corpus In Extremis: Analysing Necrocriticism" is not a polished release by any means though, and the powerful production is still suitably raw and brutal.

While the stylistic development is minimal between this album and its predecessor, I still think "Corpus In Extremis: Analysing Necrocriticism" is the stronger and slightly more varied release. The core style is pretty one-dimensional but General Surgery manage to put in some mid-paced heavy sections, and other details to keep things relatively interesting for the duration of the 15 track, 36:22 minutes long album. So upon conclusion "Corpus In Extremis: Analysing Necrocriticism" is a good quality goregrind/death metal release and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Left Hand Pathology" is the debut full-length studio album by Swedish death metal/goregrind act General Surgery. The album was released through Listenable Records in October 2006. General Surgery were originally active in the 1988-1991 period and released three demos and the "Necrology (1991)" EP before disbanding. The members have since been part of other prolific Swedish death metal and grindcore acts such as Dismember, Afflicted, Crematory and Regurgitate. General Surgery reformed again in the early 00s (although it´s only guitarist Joachim "Jocke" Carlsson and lead vocalist Grant McWilliams who remain from the lineup who recorded the "Necrology (1991)" EP) and have been putting out a string of releases since 2003.

So while "Left Hand Pathology" may be a debut album, it´s an album featuring seasoned musicians, who know how to handle their instruments. Stylistically General Surgery pretty much continue where they left off with "Necrology (1991)". Early Carcass influenced goregrind/death metal complete with gory pathology oriented lyrics and bizarre song titles like "Mucopurulent Mayhem", "Convivial Corpse Disposal Methodology", and "Capricious Provisional Cadaver Grater". The music style is also very similar to early Carcass, even down to the "juicy" growling vocal style, although the occasional old school Swedish death metal part is also heard. The latter is a minor element of the band´s sound though, and overall it wouldn´t be wrong to label the music style on "Left Hand Pathology" goregrind Carcass worship.

General Surgery was one of the first Carcass worship acts but upon returning to the scene in the early 00s, several other artists had picked up the torch, and today they are just one of many. So the novelty of being one of the first acts to pay tribute to the legendary British act has worn off. At this point it´s purely about the quality of the music and in that department the material on the 14 track, 33:53 minutes long album is decent. The playing is tight, the songwriting effective, and the sound production is raw, powerful, and detailed, so overall the product is of a relatively high quality. The "relative" word is used here because the songwriting is too one-dimensional in the end, and the tracks are hard to tell apart even after many listens, and there is no arguing the material could have prospered from more variation. Had more of the tracks featured a degree of variation like the closing track "Convivial Corpse Disposal Methodology", which is an absolutely brilliant track, my overall impression of the album had probably been different, but as it is it´s simply not varied enough.

When that is said "Left Hand Pathology" is still an entertaining release while it plays and if you can´t get enough of early Carcass worship albums this is definitely one of the places to go. Just take it for what is is. A 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.

J-Man With a title that obviously references Dismember's seminal death metal classic Like an Everflowing Stream, this 2012 EP release from Swedish goregrind legends General Surgery shows that their tongue-in-cheek humor is as in-tact as ever - and after taking just one listen to Like an Ever Flying Limb, it's also clear that the band still prides themselves on crafting grindcore music about as subtle as a freight train barreling through a quiet neighborhood. In a monsoon of devastating riffs, whirlwind drum fills, and repulsive vocals that ends in just eleven minutes, Like an Ever Flying Limb shows that General Surgery has no intent of slowing down, even after more than twenty years in the business.

Like an Ever Flying Limb isn't anything new under the sun for General Surgery - the band still plays relentless goregrind in the vein of Carcass and Exhumed with a few ventures into death metal territory - but the band does a nice job at executing their craft with power and conviction. The precise musicianship and raw production gives the EP a powerful sound, and the compositions are surprisingly sophisticated considering the style of music we're dealing with. General Surgery doesn't fall into the trap of playing endless blast-beats to sound more intense, and their ability to change up the rhythmic patterns frequently keeps Like an Ever Flying Limb from ever settling into monotony.

As short of a listen as it may be, this is an enjoyable little EP from one of Sweden's most famous grindcore outfits. Although Like an Ever Flying Limb has a “been there, done that” feeling from start to finish, it contains more than enough great riffs (and even some cool spoken word sections) to make it a recommendable purchase for goregrind enthusiasts.

UMUR "A Collection of Depravation" is a compilation album by Swedish goregrind act General Surgery. The album was released through Relapse Records in March 2012. General Surgery formed in 1988 and were active in the early nineties before a longer hiatus ensued. They reformed in 2003 and have since released a couple of studio albums. "A Collection of Depravation" is a collection of of singles, EPs, compilation tracks and some unreleased demo tracks.

The music on the album is goregrind in the early Carcass/Exhumed tradition. Out of the literally hundreds of Carcass imitators on the scene, General Surgery have always been one of the best. They write strong material, handle their instruments well and most of their releases feature decent sound productions, which are features that can´t necessarily be applied to releases by many of their collegues. The quality of the 30 tracks on "A Collection of Depravation" is also pretty high but after listening to about half of the nearly 70 minutes long album, the tracks begin to sound too much the same and it´s hard to argue against that the music style is one-dimensional as hell. I´m sure that´s how fans of the genre wants it to be, but for us more casual listeners it can get a bit much sitting through the full album. As far as being cohesive as a full listening experience "A Collection of Depravation" succeeds pretty well as the sound production on the various tracks don´t differ too much.

Of course song-titles like "Mortuary Wars", "The League of Extraordinary Grave Robbers" and "Fully-Mechanized Corpse Thresher" pull my rating up, because that´s great humour in my book. Seriously though "A Collection of Depravation" is actually a pretty great compilation of General Surgery tracks and I think a 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

J-Man General Surgery is often considered to be the best Carcass clone ever, and that is mostly (if not entirely) due to this cult classic EP. Necrology, which was originally released back in 1991, is a highly celebrated release that has a "legendary" status in grindcore circles. These Swedish legends later re-formed to release more material, but Necrology is still widely considered their most important and essential release. Although I personally only enjoy the release in small quantities, I've had a good time experiencing Necrology, and would recommend it to anyone who wants a short and not-so-sweet grindcore blast!

General Surgery plays a style of grindcore/goregrind/death metal in the vein of early Carcass. The vocal style is extremely varied, and ranges from death growls, high pitched screams, and a variety of other noises that would be extremely difficult to type out. The instrumental aspect of the album isn't too interesting or varied - fat guitar riffs and blast beats dominate most of the release. With the original release clocking in at just over 15 minutes, Necrology certainly doesn't fall into the trap of being too long for its own good. This EP is short, heavy as hell, and powerful throughout its duration. The raw and unpolished production also helps emphasize this point. You'll able to hear everything clearly and, although it is clearly not the most hi-fi piece of music out there, it suits General Surgery's style of music well.

The 2011 Relapse reissue of the album contains three bonus demo tracks, all of which are inferior to the versions on the original EP. This reissue may only be worth re-buying if you're a die-hard fan of General Surgery, otherwise the bonus material isn't strong enough to warrant a re-purchase. People who missed getting this the first time around, however, will probably want to check it out since this reissue is the best version of Necrology out there.

Although I may not entirely agree with all of the praise this EP seems to receive, it's still a quality grindcore release worthy of 2.5 - 3 stars. Anyone who wants to understand anything about extreme metal should hear this EP at some point or another, but from a subjective point of view I can think of plenty of better grindcore releases to recommend.