BONE FRAGMENTS — Too Gruesome to be Real (review)

BONE FRAGMENTS — Too Gruesome to be Real album cover Album · 2011 · Black Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3.5/5 ·
J-Man
With album art depicting something in-between an octopus and a rabbit with demonic-looking eyes, Too Gruesome to be Real shows listeners what they're in for before they even put the disc in the player. Bone Fragments is a band that was clearly inspired by campy horror flicks, and their carnival-themed and experimental sound that accompanies the imagery is also pretty unique for a black metal act. Too Gruesome to be Real is the second album from this American collective, and though I've not yet heard the band's earlier material, this one is fully recommended to fans of black metal that deviates a little bit (or a hell of a lot) into left field.

Almost as if King Diamond were to start a symphonic black metal act, Bone Fragments has a very horror movie-type atmosphere. The creepy carnival-style keyboard tones, lo-fi production, and evil growls all give Too Gruesome to be Real a great atmosphere, and, stylistically, Bone Fragments' music resides somewhere in-between symphonic black metal, avant-metal, and even traditional heavy metal. Believe it or not, quite a few of the riffs here bear more resemblance to Mercyful Fate and Judas Priest than they do to Darkthrone and Burzum, and though the raw production can obscure the album's traditional metal edge, I'd imagine that most observant listeners would pick up on it. Other that that, many of the riffs are black metal-oriented and the presence of keyboards gives the album a bit of a symphonic edge - it is worth noting, however, that by 'symphonic', I am not implying anything bombastic in the vein of Dimmu Borgir or Cradle of Filth; this is much more like 'kvlt' black metal with the use of keyboards than an entirely different subgenre. Top it all off with a bit of an avant-garde, Mr. Bungle/Unexpect-inspired edge, and you have a unique album all around.

Too Gruesome to be Real was definitely an album that I enjoyed listening to, and Bone Fragments' rather unique sound is likely to raise some eyebrows in the black metal community. I'd definitely recommend this to fans of the genre looking for something a bit different, and I'll be curious to hear what Bone Fragments has to offer from here. Too Gruesome to be Real may take a few listens to sink in, but its one-of-a-kind atmosphere makes it worthy of your attention.
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