J-Man Not unlike their heroes in Carcass, Californian extreme metal act Exhumed has made a number of changes to its blood-soaked style of goregrind over the years. The band's increasing use of groovy death metal riffs and melodic guitar solos has set them on a much more sophisticated musical path since their reformation in 2010, and this new path feels fully realized on 2013's Necrocracy.

The album's combination of catchy death metal riffs and melodic guitar solos immediately brings Heartwork-era Carcass to mind, and although there are subtle differences between the two bands, I have little doubt that fans of nineties' Carcass will love this one. Tracks like “Coins Upon the Eyes” and “(So Passes) The Glory of Death” showcase the band's impressive knack for crafting songs that are both instantly recognizable and relentlessly brutal. The full album maintains this high level of compositional mastery, and its powerful production assures that all of Necrocracy's details are clearly conveyed to its listener.

I suppose that Exhumed's blatant Carcass influence may turn off some people, but if you can look past that, you'll discover one of 2013's best death metal albums. Necrocracy will cause whiplash if you aren't careful!

UMUR "Necrocracy" is the 7th full-length studio album by US death metal act Exhumed. The album was released through Relapse Records in August 2013.

The music on "Necrocracy" pretty much continues the death metal/goregrind style from "All Guts, No Glory (2011)". It´s greatly influenced by late eighties/early nineties Carcass. There are more mid-paced death metal grooves and even more melodic guitar solos than on the predecessor. Otherwise this is Exhumed as we know them and love them. The vocals are both deep growling and higher pitched sneering, which again are a reference to Carcass. The band are pretty well playing even though nothing (other than the skillfully played guitar solos) on the album screams for a more than average technically skilled musician. It´s all about the brutal infectious grooves and blasting brutality although many of the tracks on "Necrocracy" feature almost anthemic sing along choruses. Check out tracks like "Dysmorphic" and "Coins upon the Eyes" for proof of that.

The sound production is pretty strong and powerful although it´s a slight step down from the sound production on "All Guts, No Glory (2011)". That´s probably just a matter of aquired taste though. Featuring 9 tracks and a total playing time of 38:22, "Necrocracy" is a short, "to the point" type of release. It´s not completely devoid of finesse though. As I mentioned above the melodic guitar solos are very skillfully played and it´s nice on the ears to have something a bit more melodic to hold on to amidst the omnipresent raw aggression and brutality. A 3.5 - 4 star (75%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "All Guts, No Glory" is the 6th full-length studio album by US death/ grind act Exhumed. The album was released in July 2011 by Relapse Records. The "regular" version of the album contains 11 tracks, but there is also a deluxe edition available which features a 2nd disc with no less than 6 bonus tracks.

The music on "All Guts, No Glory" is gore themed death metal/ deathgrind. Exhumed succeed pretty well in keeping the tracks interesting by often changing pace. So this is not only a "pedal down" blast fest allthough the pace is mostly very high. The tracks feature heavy mid-paced parts in addition to faster played parts and all out blasting parts. The vocals are the "classic" high pitched aggressive sneer versus the deep growling vocal style. The two vocal styles compliment each other perfectly and are one of the real assets on the album. Another asset on the album are definitely the many melodic guitar leads. The vocal style, the gory lyrics (check out songtitles like "Your Funeral, My Feast" and "So Let It Be Rotten… So Let It Be Done" for a good laugh) and the melodic leads remind me somewhat of the "Necroticism: Descanting the Insalubrious (1991)" album by Carcass. It´s not fair to call Exhumed a Carcass clone but there are many similarities between their respective styles. I´d also mention acts like Gorerotted and Aborted as references.

The musicianship is on a pretty high level. We´re exposed to fairly technical playing for the style and it´s nice to hear that filthy and gory deathgrind can be delivered with precision playing without sounding sterile in any way. In fact the sound production has a well sounding organic touch to it that greatly enhances the listening experience IMO. Exhumed obviously aimed at that distinct dark and murky early nineties death metal sound and succeeded. The more modern studio techniques of today mean that everything is audible and powerful in the soundscape though. Something that wasn´t necessarily true on many early nineties death metal releases.

"All Guts, No Glory" is an excellent deathgrind release to these ears. Despite a level of brutality and aggression that´s really high, the tracks are memorable. So even though "All Guts, No Glory" is sure to beat you to a bloody pulp, you´ll still be able to remember which track hit you where and how hard. A 4 star rating is fully deserved.

UMUR Exhumed / Gadget is a split release by Swedish grindcore act Gadget and American grindcore act Exhumed. The split was released in 2001 by Relapse Records.

There are 7 tracks in all on the 13:07 minute long split. Obviously most of the tracks on the split are very short. The 3 Exhumed tracks are in their typical goregrind/ early Carcass influenced style. They even play a cover of the classic Carcass track Exhume to Consume. Gadget´s 4 tracks are more in the Napalm Death tradition with touches of the crust grindcore sound that a band like Nasum are famous for. Gadget are often compared to Nasum and rightly so IMO. At least based on the 4 tracks that are featured here.

The sound quality is pretty lo-fi and in Exhumed´s case downright filhty.

This split is more than anything a fan release, and while the quality isn´t bad it´s not really good either and a 2 star rating is warranted.

J-Man Since their formation over twenty years ago, American grindcore/death metal band Exhumed have established themselves as one of the pioneers of "gore metal". Featuring repulsive album covers, even more repulsive lyrics, and music brutal enough to make your head explode, it's safe to say that Exhumed's music is not for the faint of heart. After a five year hiatus beginning in 2005, the band has returned with All Guts, No Glory - yet another brutal, gore-soaked album from Matt Harvey and company. One look at the cannibalistic album cover, or just the title itself, and it's clear that the band has lost none of their "inspiration" over this period of time. All Guts, No Glory is not a flawless masterpiece, but it's a more-than-worthy acquisition for anyone searching for some truly "extreme" metal.

The music here is a cross between the raw intensity of American death metal, the fat riffs of Swedish death metal, and the thick blastbeats and vocal variation of goregrind. The lyrics (mainly dealing with gore, dismemberment, cannibalism, and other pleasant topics) give All Guts, No Glory an atmosphere not too different from a group like Cannibal Corpse, despite the added grindcore influence. Just read the lyrics to "Your Funeral, My Feast", and you'll get a picture what topics are covered here. The aforementioned track also happens to be favorite from the album - those riffs are just killer! A few semi-melodic guitar solos give All Guts, No Glory plenty of good variation; this album certainly is not a never-ending and boring shredfest, despite its overall brutality. The production and musicianship are also both professional and highly enjoyable. Danny Walker's relentless drumming especially impresses me - the man is simply a monster!

All Guts, No Glory is a good example of grindcore/death metal done right. Killer riffs, technical compositions, top-notch solos, and tons of vocal variation are all present on this effort from Exhumed, and that's ultimately what makes this such a successful record. I would've enjoyed a bit more variation in the songwriting department (not just the semi-melodic guitar solos), as well as more of an original approach (lyrically and stylistically), but otherwise this is a very impressive effort. I'm sure Exhumed didn't intend on shattering boundaries with All Guts, No Glory, but if their goal was to create a highly enjoyable extreme metal album, then they've succeeded tremendously. 3.5 stars seems very fair here. If you enjoy your extreme metal on the more tongue-in-cheek, gore-oriented side and also enjoy thoughtful compositions, All Guts, No Glory is a tremendous recommendation.