UMUR "Reclaim the Beat" is the 5th full-length studio album by Swedish death/ thrash act Defleshed. The album was released in March 2005 by Regain Records. For now it´s the final release by the band as it was announched in November 2005 that Defleshed had split-up.

If you are familiar with Defleshed it should come as no surprise that they continue their aggressive death/ thrash onslaught on "Reclaim the Beat" almost like nothing has happened since the release of "Royal Straight Flesh (2002)". Well... actually since "Fast Forward (1999)", as the style of music Defleshed play on "Reclaim the Beat" is very similar to the style featured on those two releases. It´s high speed death/ thrash with fiercely aggressive vocals and tight precision playing.I´d like to reference the band´s own description of their music using a quote from the booklet: "Defleshed is a non-religious and non-political courier of high-octanic metal mayhem. Enjoy the Madness !".

All tracks are pretty short (the average length is about 2:40 minutes) and to the point and I would be lying if I said there is much variation to be found. It´s very seldom the band play heavier mid-paced sections, so the tempo mostly varies from fast to the trademark rotor blade/ machine gun blasting that drummer Matte Modin executes to perfection. All tracks are characterized by an energetic performance and an aggressive attitude you´ll seldom come across this convincing. The quality of the tracks is consistent throughout, but because the tracks don´t vary much from each other it´s also a bit hard to point out highlights. But tracks like "Stripped to the Bone", "Bulldozed (Back to Basic)", "Grind and Rewind" and the Mötley Crue cover "Red Hot" (which is the track that stands out the most from the rest) are definitely among the more standout tracks on "Reclaim the Beat". The lyrics are delivered in the trademark tongue in cheek fashion which song-titles like "Under Destruction" and "May the Flesh Be With You" bear witness to.

The sound production on "Reclaim the Beat" needs a special mention. The sound is very powerful and especially the drums have a very distinct sound. The distorted bass sound is also greatly enjoyable and adds another dimension to the soundscape.

Personally I think it´s sad that "Reclaim the Beat" is the final release by Defleshed. I greatly enjoy their extremely energetic and aggressive take on death/ thrash. But if it has to be that way at least "Reclaim the Beat" sees them go out with a bang. I don´t think any of Defleshed releases are flawless, and "Reclaim the Beat" doesn´t change the fact that most Defleshed tracks sound a bit too much the same, but when that is said, you´ll be hard pressed to find another act like Defleshed, who consistently has released quality death/ thrash albums with ballsy "fuck You" attitude, tongue in cheek humour and an unrivalled fircely aggressive energy level. In other words the convincing way they deliver their music fully make up for the fact that their material isn´t especially varied. "Reclaim the Beat" fully deserves a 4 - 4.5 star rating.

UMUR "Royal Straight Flesh" is the 4th full-length studio album by Swedish death/ thrash metal act Defleshed. The album was released in August 2003 by Regain Records. It´s been three years since the release of "Fast Forward (1999)", but listening to "Royal Straight Flesh" it soon becomes apparent that nothing has really changed in those years.

...Defleshed more or less still play the same fiercely aggressive death/ thrash style as they did on the predecessor. The energy level is extremely high with the fast played and aggressive riffs and the relentlessly pounding beats as the predominant characteristica. Lead vocalist/ bassist Gustaf Jorde has just the right hateful and raspy vocal delivery to provide the music with a venemous "in your face" attitude. The music is rather one-dimensional but with an energetic performance, powerful and raw production and the generally very well written and effective songs, it´s not a major issue. It´s not like 11 tracks distributed over 32:11 minutes should prove to be hard to swallow even though most of them build on more or less the same formula. Not when the music is as well played and attitude filled as this is. There are no uneccessary melodic hooks, solos or other tricks to make the music memorable, but after a couple of spins you begin to be able to recognise rythmic hooks, memorable vocal lines and other little details that ultimately make "Royal Straight Flesh" a memorable album.

"Royal Straight Flesh" is a no frills aggressive death/ thrash album, that is sure to beat you to a bloody pulp and afterwards leave you bleeding in the gutter. All that in just over 30 minutes. Oh what sweet torture. I absolutely adore this album and a 4 star rating is well deserved.

UMUR Fast Forward is the 3rd full-length studio album by brutal Swedish death/ thrash act Defleshed. The album was originally released in February 1999 by WAR music for the European market. It was released by a couple of other labels other places in the world. Regain Records re-issued the album in 2002 with 4 bonus tracks.

The music on the album is fiercely aggressive and brutal death/ thrash. The vocals are growling/ raspy and the tempo on the album is generally very fast-paced and frantic in nature. The album is as such very one-dimensional and there´s little variation within and between songs. This would usually be something that I would complain about, but on Fast Forward I don´t consider the lack of variation to be a problem. Maybe it´s because the album is only 29:58 minutes long, which seems to be the perfect length for an album like this. The quality of the songs is really great and it´s the kind of music that it´s impossible to sit still while listening to. I can vividly imagine a little "Good Friendly Violence" in a moshpit while Defleshed played on the stage. The music is so intense and violent in nature that when Fast Forward is finished I´m exhausted ( in a good relaxed way). The tongue in cheek humour that the band displayed on the two preceeding albums, is also present here. I guess songtitles like The Return of the Flesh, The Iron and the Maiden, Lightning Strikes Thrice and Feeding Fatal Fairies tell their own story of a band that don´t take themselves too seriously. At the same time their musical exploits leave no doubt that they are here to kick some ass. And that they do.

The production is raw and powerful. The sound brings out the best in the music.

Fast Forward is actually not much different from Under the Blade (1997), which has a very similar sound, but it´s the quality and memorability of the material that sets the two albums apart. Fast Forward is a much better album in every way possible and fully deserves a 4 star rating. Just remember not to expect much variation. Expect pure sonic violence and your expectations are sure to be met.

UMUR Death... The High Cost of Living is a live album release by Swedish death/ thrash act Defleshed. The album was released in January 1999. The album is limited to 1500 copies. Calling Death... The High Cost of Living and album is strechting the definition a bit though. The album is only 20:39 minutes long and contains 7 tracks. All tracks are taken from the band´s first two albums: Abrah Kadavrah (1996) and Under the Blade (1997). While the performance by the three band members is really good and tight, the sound quality is close to bootleg sound quality IMO. The bad sound quality really doesn´t do anything positive for my listening experience and I can only recommend Death... The High Cost of Living to hardcore fans of the band. A 2 star rating is warranted.

UMUR Under the Blade is the 2nd full-length studio album by Swedish death/ thrash metal act Defleshed. The album was released in 1997 by Invasion Records.

The music on the album is brutal and aggressive death/ thrash metal. The vocals are growling sneers. The tempo in the songs are mostly fast to blasting, but there are the occasional mid-paced part too. The musicianship is tight and the production is powerful, so no complaints about those things. The album is overall very consistent and all tracks are of good quality. They sound a bit too much the same though and I have a slight complaint about that. Take out any song on the album though and they are all powerful and aggressive death/ thrash assaults. There are a few experiments on the debut album but don´t expect anything like that on Under the Blade. The album is very direct, pretty simple and aggressive. The musicianship is good. Tight and powerful playing from all three members.

The production is a notch better than the sound on the debut album Abrah Kadavrah (1996). It´s powerful and suits the music well.

Under the Blade is overall a good release by Defleshed, but the fact that the songs sound too much the same does drag my rating down to 3 stars.