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As we enter the second wave of OSDM (third? Who’s counting?), the up-and-comers are finally getting past hero-worship and writing some fucking songs. Bands like Morbus Chron, Entrails, Miasmal, and Demonical — all Swedish, for some reason — have lifted the sonic template of the old school but shredded the blueprints, delivering an updated take on traditional ripping death. With Horrendous’s The Chills, you can finally add an American band to the festering pile.
On paper, Horrendous look boring. Painfully unoriginal song titles like “The Ritual” and “Altars”, bland artwork, HM-2 pedals… I’m already yawning. But the band has two things going for them, and they’re the most intangible gifts: songcraft and taste. Horrendous steal from the best, blatantly, but they own it. Entombed guitars rub up against Asphyx vocals, Slayer melodies bleed into gloomy slow sections, hinting at everything from Autopsy to Convulse.
Horrendous tweak the recipe with the inclusion of omnipresent lead guitar. If James Murphy is the grand master, these dudes spent a month studying at the same temple. The technical chops aren’t as developed, but their songwriting often outshines their elders. Left Hand Path is mostly famous for its epic title track — Horrendous know that song back to front, exploring variations on that theme throughout all nine songs of The Chills. Across the nine-minute closing track, “The Eye of Madness”, the band shift styles continuously, with a long-form melodic groove transitioning into d-beat sections, gothic doom, echoing feedback, and monastic chants. That inventiveness serves them well, as the album never lags.
Careers are built on the backs of albums this strong. With any luck, there’s more brilliance to come — hopefully with better song titles.
—Aaron Lariviere
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HEAR THE CHILLS
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Horrendous – “The Womb”
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Horrendous – “The Eye of Madness”
. . .
BUY THE CHILLS
Dark Descent Records (CD, vinyl to follow)
. . .
Savage as fuck!
I’m gonna get my HM-2 repaired and start another band.
Maybe you need to go back to school with Wyatt Marshall. Morbus Chron sounds NOTHING like Miasmal or Entrails or Demonical (which is a total Dismember rip). MB has def “shredded the blueprints,” but Miasmal (BORING), Entrails, and Demonical are trying to piece it back together again. AND then you compare Horrendous to Slayer and CONVULSE? Really? With any luck, there’s better writing to come — hopefully by people who know what the hell they’re talking about.
You know what they say about haters.
He said “Slayer melodies”.
That’s not exactly “zomg they’re just like Slayer!” or “as good as Slayer” or even “sounds like Slayer”.
Just that the melodies recall Slayer’s melodies.
(And I think I see what he means, from the sample tracks there. YouTube audio encoding is still shit, but the melodies… yeah, there’s some Slayer in there.)
(Also, he didn’t say Morbus Chron sounded like Miasmal or Entrails or Demonical.
He said they “lifted the sonic template of the old school but shredded the blueprints”. They’re grouped together because of a common relationship to old school death metal – which didn’t all sound alike either.
It’s important to read what someone actually said, rather than the vague impression of what they must have meant that you got by skimming… or whatever the hell it is you did to the article, because it sure wasn’t close reading.)
Right “Slayer melodies” doesn’t mean “Slayer.” It means something else entirely. Just as “Bands like x,y,z” doesn’t mean the author means those bands ARE alike. And it surely doesn’t mean the author means they “sound alike.”
This is such a unique and cogent piece I must’ve missed all of that.
Good luck with your nitpicking goals in 2012.
If these things are inconsequential to you, then why are you even bothering to post your comment?
brb, loling at the hypocrisy of the comment you just made
It would be hypocritical if what I was doing was in some way inconsequential, or if the points made in the review were inconsequential. But of course they are not.
If you don’t care about the music discussed, or the way in which it is discussed, it should not matter to you. It does to me, therefore I will continue to draw attention to it. And you are free to have your “lols” or whatever.
Just know that I am correct, and you are incorrect. That’s all I ask.
u mad?
You are a massive douchebag. I am correct and you are incorrect.
I’m never mad, and I don’t have to resort to silly Internet phrases like “U MAD BRO?” or the terminally popular term of endearment, “douchebag,” to get my point across.
Congratulations on thinking just like everyone else. It must be comfy in that hive.
go home. nobody likes you.
Been meaning to check these guys out. I thought the hang-up about the originality of the song titles was a little weird, though. To each his own.
Yeah, the song titles aren’t offensively bad, just generic. Luckily that doesn’t get in the way of the music one bit.
fucking love this album, watch out for this band.
This is the second very positive review of this album I’ve read — I need to check this out.
God damn, this is great. Exactly the kind of Death Metal I want to hear.
“Glorious Heathen Locks?” Sounds like a hesher shampoo commercial.
I don’t give a shit, by the way.
1- Nice review, I’m a big fan of this record.
2-Hopefully Glorious Heathen Locks will either grow the fuck up, or make his way back to blabbermouth.
when did the comment threads here turn into the roadrunner records board
Haven’t listened to the music yet, but the cover art looks like a half assed copy of a Dan Seagrave piece. Kinda getting tired of the OSDM wave. I’ll stick to the genuine OG bands. Also, Morbus Chron sounds very much like fucking Dismember so they are far from ripping up the template.