UMUR "Ma Belle Scalpelle" is an EP release by Swedish death/thrash metal act Defleshed. The EP was released through Invasion Records in 1994. Defleshed formed in 1991 and released three demos, a single, and this EP, before finally releasing their debut full-length studio album "Abrah Kadavrah" in 1996. "Ma Belle Scalpelle" was included in a compilation package with the material from "Abrah Kadavrah", which was released by Hammerheart Records in 2000.

The music on "Ma Belle Scalpelle" is brutal yet thrash tinged death metal. The growling vocals, the morbid atmospheres and leads definitely belong in the death metal catagory and so does the most heavy and brutal riffs, but Defleshed also deliver som fast-paced thrash tinged sections. This is probably their most death metal oriented release though and the thrash metal influences which they would use as a dominant element later on their career are very limited on "Ma Belle Scalpelle".

There are 5 tracks on the 19:44 minutes long EP and they are all good quality death metal tracks. I wouldn´t call this an exceptional death metal release but there are enough intense energy, skillful playing, and effectful songwriting for this to be an entertaining listen throughout. The whole thing is packed in a pretty raw, unpolished but also well sounding production job, so that part of the EP is decent too.

Upon conclusion "Ma Belle Scalpelle" is a good quality EP release by Defleshed and a promising start to their career. Of course they had already released quite a few demos and the September 1993 "Obsculum Obscenum" single, but this was their first longer label release. Although this is a far cry from the sound (and to some extent the quality) Defleshed would develop in 1997 and be known for onwards, there´s still something special about this band (even on these early releases). A 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.