Review Summary: A different, but still gruesome album that deals less with death and dying and more on disgusting pleasures of the anus. A must buy for Autopsy fans and a high recommendation to death metal fans.
Many have noted this as being a departure from Autopsy's earlier sound. That is, a mix of lightning fast riffs and slow atmospheric riffing combined with some of the bloodiest and goriest lyrics you can think of. No this album does something different. Sure the riffs both fast and slow are there, the solo work is still good, and Chris Reifert's vocals are still as bone-chilling as they ever were. Pretty much the only thing that does change from Autopsy's earlier stuff is the lyrics themselves, and more-or-less the presentation.
Let's start with the presentation. As noted all of the key parts that make Autopsy the great influence on Death Metal, that is the riffs, lyrics and atmosphere, are all present. However the production and mastering is different from prior works. It's more mudded and sluggish. The result is a more low-key atmosphere, sort-of like a night shadow, and it works quite well with what Autopsy fans are familiar with.
The lyrics, being the only other changed aspect, focus less on the art of dying and more on what strange acts that may go on while one is still alive. That being said, the album couldn't be more Aptly titled; ***fun is full of grotesque stories of coprophillia, necrophillia, grave desecration and often mixes two or all of these aspects together in a multitude of songs. Reifert's presentation of these lyrics could also be more reminiscent of early hardcore punk, which often tried to keep the lyrics confined to the beat no matter how fast the riffs go.
Pacing could be better, though. Around the halfway mark songs seem to blend together into one mass of poorly produced sludge. The lack of other subject matter also keeps the album back from being the best of the best, as it feels like Reifert ran out of ideas and just stuck with repeating himself (note the songs Humiliate Your Corpse, Sodomize Your Corpse, and *** on Your Grave)
Some songs to check out include the following:
Humiliate your Corpse - Some great riffage courtesy of Danny Coralles and a very energetic second song
Praise the Children - One of the best vocal presentations on the album. It's a mid-paced song with a crawling and creepy main riff that sends chills down your spine.
Humiliate Your Corpse
***eater - Probably the closest thing to a title track, it's main attraction is the long droning bridge that brings home the coprophagous message
Blood Orgy - A song that is as closest to Mental Funeral or Severed Survival than you're going to get on this album. It's got a killer opening and a oozing rotting bridge, not to mention some really excellent instrumentation.
Grave Violators - A sick spoken-word description told local news style, and a great combination of riffs, solos and vocals.
Course this being the digipak release you get some goodies, though as far as Digipak CDs go this is pretty bare bones. It has 10 live tracks that cover most of Autopsy's discography, which were enjoyable. That's pretty much it, aside from the paper maché CD case.
