Review Summary: Another generic album made by a band so horrendous one can only conclude that their fan-base is composed of masochists.
With each year that passes extreme metal is becoming more and more stagnant – original bands are few and far between. As Generation Y ages the ability for extreme music to shock and awe lessens; the two appear to be negatively correlated. What's become apparent is that metal is succumbing to the same sort of elite fogeyism rock did 25 years ago. We like it when our death metal sounds like 1991, and we like it when our black metal sounds like 1994. Bands that created music in those early years set the standard, of which all new bands are subjected to. What's to blame for this? The recent crop of generic bands to emerge from the melodic, technical, and brutal genres of death metal seem to shed light on the matter. Slam bands like Devourment, more so.
Devourment started up in 1995, and between then and 2005, went through sporadic bouts of inactivity. As a result, none of the founding members remain. That hardly matters, however, because with music this bland catching any glimpse of individuality in the workmanship is nigh impossible. With the possible exception of metalcore and nu-metal, the sort of music they play and allegedly pioneered is the most despised genre in metal, and rightfully so at that. Slam death metal is a revolting combination of brutal death metal and goregrind, employing chugging breakdowns that some unfortunate souls describe as being catchy. While many complain about the generic aspects of heavy metal, most slam groups revel in it, copying each other to the point where albums made by completely different bands are interchangeable with each other. Unfortunately, this record is no different.
Contrary to the claimed strength of the genre, almost none of the riffs on
Unleash the Carnivore are catchy. When the first song "Unleash the Carnivore" starts, the results are promising. The beginning riff is entertaining enough; drums competent. However, things take a turn for the worst when vocalist Mike Majewski begins his gargling and growling. Indeed, they are low and brutal, but the problem is that they're also grating and
extremely boring. Though, I suppose regarding the latter case they fit the music perfectly. Like most bands whose main focus is gore, the lyrics are mindless, monotonous, and misogynistic. The lyrics of "Deflesh the Abducted" are typical: "I rip out its throat, ***ing me with bliss – abduct the whore; deflesh her more. *** you 'til your dead, causing me to explode". These types of lyrics were stupid in the early 90's; all the more so now.
The strict and predictable pattern that all Devourment songs follow are a recipe for disaster, and not of the good sort: semi-interesting intro, noisy bridge, then chugging riff that bears some resemblance to a breakdown whereupon "vokills" – which sound like a drunken idiot attempting to burp the alphabet – commence. Repeat this formula for another four minutes and voila! You've got another Devourment song! While playing this record listeners may find themselves periodically checking their music player, to ensure that the current song going isn't stuck on repeat. Unfortunately, each glance will end in bitter disappointment, for one soon comes to the understanding that all the songs sound exactly alike.
Now, with bands like Devourment, one is reminded of what made the 90's so great for extreme metal. However, as good as bands like
Cannibal Corpse and
Carcass are, it's difficult to forgive them for inspiring people to produce absolute crap like this. The only genuine compliment I can give this album is a nod to the wonderful album art created by Dan Seagrave, who has created iconic pieces for bands like
Morbid Angel,
Suffocation,
Dismember, and
Pestilence. If you're a fan of generic goregrind you may want to check this out, but otherwise stay the *** away from it.
