UMUR "Erase" is the 3rd full-length studio album by Dutch death metal act Gorefest. The album was released through Nuclear Blast Records in July 1994. Gorefest had experienced a relative amount of success with both "Mindloss (1991)" and "False (1992)", and were in those days widely awknowledged as one of the most prolific death metal artsts out of The Netherlands.

With the addition of guitarist Boudewijn Bonebakker to the lineup on "False (1992)" a musical tranformation began though, and the results of that change was first heard on "Erase". While both "Mindloss (1991)" and "False (1992)" are arguably old school death metal releases to the bone, the sophistication in the guitar and harmony department were enhanced with the addition of Bonebakker to the ranks. He made it clear from the start that he wasn´t interested in just playing basic death metal, but that he wanted to incorporate a more melodic and rock oriented touch to the music, inspired by his great love of 70s and 80s heavy metal and hard rock.

Stylistically that change is clearly heard on "Erase" which features several elements from 70s and 80s heavy metal and hard rock in addition to maintaining a death metal basis. The many guitar harmonies are one of great assets of the music, and a feature the band focus on much more than before on "Erase". I wouldn´t label the music death´n´roll, but at times it´s very close to that description and it wouldn´t be completely wrong to tag the music as that. Jan-Chris De Koeijer (vocals, bass) has changed his vocal style slightly too. He is less of a growler and more or a raw barking shouter on this album.

The musicianship is strong. Gorefest were at this point a tight playing unit. Diverse rhythmic playing by drummer Ed Warby (who would later find fame with Ayreon and a bunch of other projects), great harmony guitar work and solos and catchy powerful riffs, and De Koeijer´s distinct sounding vocals in front.

The 8 tracks on the 42:21 minutes long album are all relatively catchy and powerful, and feature great guitar work. The latter element is to my ears the highlight of the album and at times the harmony guitar themes are rather sophisticated. Tracks like "Low", "Erase", "To Hell and Back", and "Goddess in Black", are among the standout tracks, but as mentioned "Erase" is a strong release throughout. It´s also a relavitely diverse release and tracks like "Peace of Paper" and "Goddess in Black" stick out as being a bit different than the rest of the material. The former is the most death metal oriented track on the album and even features a couple of blast beat sections, where the rest of the material is predominantly heavy or mid-paced. The latter mentioned track is slow paced and slightly more atmospheric than the remaining tracks.

"Erase" features a powerful and well sounding production, which suits the music perfectly. It´s not as brutal or in your face as the productions of previous releases, but it suits the more sophisticated sound well. "Erase" is probably a fanbase divider as it could prove not to be old school and brutal enough for the fans of Gorefest early material and as a consequence of the still relatively brutal vocals, it may prove a bit to harsh for those who enjoy the more rock oriented part of the band´s sound, but personally I think they strike a good balance here and a 3.5 - 4 star (75%) rating is deserved.

Warthur With Soul Survivor, Gorefest jump onto the death 'n' roll microgenre bandwagon that Entombed and others had been driving for a couple of years prior, and to their credit they pull off the style admirably. To be fair, they had been preparing this sonic shift some time in advance, with groundwork laid on the preceding Erase, but here they lock on to the genre and really nail it, churning out a set of songs which manage to balance being genuinely anthemic whilst still having a thick layer of death metal grit to them. Never mind that you can't listen to "Forty Shades" without thinking of 50 Shades of Grey - this is still a death 'n' roll mosh party in a sleek 44 minute package.

UMUR "Rise to Ruin" is the 7th full-length studio album by Dutch death metal act Gorefest. The album was released through Nuclear Blast Records in August 2007 (September 2007 in the US). It´s the band´s second release after their comeback with "La Muerte (2005)". The regular edition features 9 tracks, while the limited digipack edition features two bonus tracks.

The music on "Rise to Ruin" pretty much continues where "La Muerte (2005)" left off although the music on "Rise to Ruin" is generally a bit more brutal than was the case on the predecessor. Gorefest have left behind most of the "alternative" elements that were also a tiny part of the sound on "La Muerte (2005)" and "Rise to Ruin" is a more "pure" death metal release. The music on the album is the sound of Gorefest to the bone. Heavy riffs, varied drumming/rhythmic variation, melodic guitar solos, and the distinct sounding semi-growling barks by Jan-Chris de Koeijer. The political and social themed lyrics are also present and accounted for. The playing is as usual on a high level and the album is well produced too, featuring a strong and powerful sound.

Tracks like "Revolt" and "The War on Stupidity" are killer death metal tracks (or how about the brick heavy "A Question of Terror"), but most of the material can deservedly be labelled that. Compared to "La Muerte (2005)", which in many ways is a similar sounding albeit slightly more diverse album, I think "Rise to Ruin" is overall a bit stronger. Maybe because it´s more consistent in style, but no matter what it´s a greatly enjoyable album which proves beyond any doubt that Gorefest´s comeback was artistically successful. It probably won them back a few old fans too, who had turned their backs on the band during their alternative/heavy metal period in the mid- to late nineties. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "La Muerte" is the 6th full-length studio album by Dutch death metal act Gorefest. The album was released through Nuclear Blast Records in August 2005. After a less than favorable response to "Chapter 13 (1998)" from fans and critics alike, Gorefest split up in 1998. They reformed again in 2004 to play some festival shows and as it often happens when a band reunites to do a few shows, chemistry works it´s mysterious ways and the band decided to write and record another album.

While the last couple of albums experimented with a 70s influenced hard rock sound and other alternative metal styles, "La Muerte" is a return to the band´s death metal roots. Stylistically I´d say "La Muerte" could have been placed between "False (1992)" and "Erase (1994)" in Gorefest discography as it features the death metal brutality of the former and some of the more melodic tinged death metal elements of the latter. It´s mostly the sound of "Erase (1994)" that I´m reminded of though. Lead vocalist/bassist Jan-Chris de Koeije sings in the same semi-growling style as he did on that album.

As always when we´re talking Gorefest we´re treated to a very well playing band. These guys are skilled but never enter "mindless wankery" territory. They knew what their fans wanted at this point and they delivered. Not too many unneccesary "experiments", but a focus on dynamic and catchy death metal. The years and the more melodic influences on the last couple of albums haven´t gone by unnoticed though and "La Muerte" also features elements that remind me of the last couple of albums. Thankfully not the tame riffing that made those releases somewhat powerless listens (especially "Chapter 13 (1998)"). An example is the heavy "Rogue State", which features loads of melodic soloing.

At 64:44 minutes "La Muerte" is maybe a bit too long for it´s own good, and there are moments where the album enters a deadlock. Thankfully it doesn´t happen too often and overall I find "La Muerte" an enjoyable release and a welcome comeback for the Dutch guys. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Soul Survivor" is the 4th full-length studio album by Dutch death/heavy metal act Gorefest. The album was released through Nuclear Blast Records in April 1996. Before lead guitarist Boudewijn Bonebakker joined Gorefest, shortly before the recording of the band´s 2nd full-length studio album "False (1992)", he made it no secret that he would in time try and move the band in a more 70s heavy metal/hard rock direction. It´s not exactly audible on "False (1992)", but the band´s next album "Erase (1994)" features a more heavy/hard rocking sound (while still maintaining a relatively raw death metal sound) than it´s more brutal predecessor. "Soul Survivor" is the album where Gorefest took the last step and the music on "Soul Survivor" probably sounds close to Bonebakker´s original vision.

While the music on the album can somewhat be called death metal rooted, it´s actually only the semi-growling vocals by Jan-Chris de Koeijer and the occasional harder edged riff that points in that direction. If you take away the raw vocals, "Soul Survivor" is for the most part a pretty melodic 70s influenced heavy metal album (there are even the occasional use of organ on the album). It´s acts like Thin Lizzy and UFO rather than Cannibal Corpse and Morbid Angel that come to mind. Gorefest tread a delicate path here though and because of the rather unusual mix of semi-growling vocals, hard rocking riffs and melodic solos and twin leads, "Soul Survivor" face the risk of not really appealing to the audience of any of the two genres. Death metal fans will probably miss a bit more bite, brutality and power while fans of hard rock and heavy metal will probably be turned off by the semi-growling vocals. Luckily for Gorefest, we are some of us, who like both styles and can relate to the music on "Soul Survivor". The music is well played and it´s obvious that especially Bonebakker puts his heart and soul into the guitar work.

Featuring a relatively warm and organic sound production, "Soul Survivor" has in addition to the songwriting and the musicianship many good things going for it. It´s not an album that makes a ton of impact, but it´s certainly both pleasant entertaining. I´d say a 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is fair.