Gruesome Stuff Relish - Sempiternal Death Grind (2013)

Not long ago, I covered an earlier Gruesome Stuff Relish record, Horror Rises from the Tomb, as a part of an October horror-metal theme month. I wasn't a big fan of that release, for the same reason I'm often underwhelmed by much of this grindcore or deathgrind in the wake of the Carcass/Repulsion legacy. It basically comes down to this: just because you're obsessed with horror movies, punkish fuck-all attitude and your gory precursors, doesn't really mean that you can write albums full of riffless, recycled rhythmic tropes and abrasive production values and expect to slide on by. Structure and songwriting still apply, and it's only the rare band that recognizes this which seem to put albums of note in this particular field of extremity. With their third album Sempiternal Death Grind (which I can only assume takes its title as a spoof of the old Dutch death band's moniker), I feel like these Spaniards have taken a step towards providing a more wholesome, entertaining experience, if not an entire leap or bound in that direction.

This is a mass of ripping, flesh-shearing guitars and blood-dripping, splatter-gore vocals which once again falls under the categorization of Carcass banner-men. Thanks to a very bright and brash production and a varied enough palette of riffing dynamics, though, it manages to remain concise, concussive, and even enjoyable for much of its 37 minute length. The distortion is harsh enough that, at its busiest, it might become a fraction difficult to follow closely, but Gruesome Stuff Relish actually compensate for this by providing a lot of accessibility in the spikes of surgical, atonal melodies that spark up from the rhythmic bone saws. Tracks like "They Are the Plague" and "In Death We Breath" aren't contributing a lot of novelty to the genre, but the constant flux between driving D-beat rhythms and vile twists of archaic death metal notation does keep the ear affixed as the blades descend. Add to this the thick, monstrous bass, which isn't itself very standout but definitely gives the riffing some added breadth and texture; and the nice, clean snap of that snare drum, very audible alongside the denser guitar tone, and you've got a fairly pleasant knife in the eyes.

I also did dig the use of organs and synthesizers to consistently affirm the band's giallo/horror influence, it definitely is another example of how the band are atmospherically evolving. In truth, I wouldn't mind some more of this to help differentiate the Spaniards from other like-minded outfits, but I realize that too much orchestration/effects would create a stigma for many of the band's likely fanbase. The vocals here are no less than what you'd expect, a pairing of snarls and guttural grunts, but I'll also give some credit that the raspier inflection seems like someone has just thrown up, the throat is full of bile and each line is delivered with a real, painful nastiness that pushes it past mere acceptability into gruesome entertainment. Another strong point are the breaks, as in "S.O.S.", where you get that thick, pulsating, distorted bass and the more whispered, dry vocals and background effects. Sempiternal Death Grind is not overall a massive evolution of Gruesome's style, and in truth there are very few memorable riffs you'll feel summoned back to after about 15 minutes, but I will say without hesitation that its appreciable subtleties make it the best record I've heard from them to date.

Verdict: Indifference [6.75/10]

https://www.facebook.com/gruesomestuffrelish

Gruesome Stuff Relish - Horror Rises from the Tomb (2008)

Spain has served as a safe harbor for some pretty sick fucks this past decade, particularly in regards to the goregrind/death metal set, but while acts like Machetazo, Haemorrhage and Avulsed seem to have a genuine sense of spattered pathos surrounding their recordings, the Asturias trio Gruesome Stuff Relish definitely delves into the more campy side of the slaughterhouse. No surprise, then, that this makes them a pretty snug fit for the US based Razorback Records, who thrive off this sort of concentrated silliness and released the band's first two full-length efforts. Unfortunately, though there are a few admirable qualities to the Spaniards' approach to this rapidly tiring niche, I found the painfully average riffing to null my appreciation in short order.

This is essentially another of those groups which owes its very existence to what Carcass were doing in the late 80s, with perhaps an inkling of Repulsion thrown in for good measure, and the B-movie/exploitation film lyrical influence that most of their label mates and goregrind peers all share (with threadbare lyrics akin to Mortician). Riffs are churned out in a bevy of familiar, primitive chord progressions that have just as much in common with punk as metal, but with a sordid darkness to them that reminds me of a mesh of Bolt Thrower and Autopsy. I did enjoy the layer of raucous filth applied to the guitar tone, almost like a punk Obituary on tunes like "The Symbol of Tupanamba" but the actual patterns of chords don't seem as if the band spent a large amount of time and detail in constructing them, and it quickly becomes a been-there, heard-that sort of record which is doing little more than paying tribute to its influences. Granted, some will argue that this in of itself is the charm in a record like Horror Rises from the Tomb, but to be honest with you I'm getting a little tired of the apathetic acceptance of effortless metal music just because it looks good and the band cares about things we want to hear...like zombies, cannibal, serial killers, tits...

I'm not accusing this record of being particularly awful at what it sets out to accomplish, mind you, but there is very little to distinguish it from its carnal peers; only when I listen to, say, Exhumed's Slaughtercult, I am rewarded with manic riffing and grisly intensity that makes it worth the while. The shortened track lengths and lack of much variety here really hit a wall after about 5-6 tracks, and though I dig the repulsive grinding edge to the guitar and the violent brickwork laid out by the drummer here, and even the broad and bloody pairing of the Carcass-styled rasp and growl (occasionally sauteed in a more swishy guttural inflection), it's that lack of interesting or truly entertaining riffs that really wore out its welcome. Admittedly, the colorful and horrific camp of the cover collage is pretty sweet, and I like that they never over-splurge on the use of samples, but musically this sophomore just wasn't on par with Ghoul, Machetazo, Frightmare, Splatterhouse, Blood Freak or the many other haunted house freaks and blood suckers filling out this niche. S'alright, but I get more chills and thrills from a single line of Vincent Price dialogue.

Verdict: Indifference [5.5/10]

http://www.myspace.com/gruesomestuff