Review Summary: Welcome to the grisly world of Porkfarm!
Sometimes you need some mindless fun when it comes to music. A non-serious, almost comical listening experience that you don’t have to think about. Just take a look at this band’s name: Porkfarm, hailing from the UK. Does it sound like the name of a brutal death metal band? Yes, yes it does, and that’s exactly what
Involuntary Surrender is over 40 minutes of dummy death metal is just what the doctor ordered. The UK isn’t widely known for their brutal death metal scene, but Porkfarm aims to change that.
When I say “dummy death metal”, I mean that this is the perfect kind of music to just vibe to. No avant-garde tendencies, no experimentation, just straight-up, bonkers death metal. These guys are (like I said) mainly brutal death metal with a couple slams for good measure, but also extremely talented and technical virtuosos. The riffage is pure carnage, bashing you right in the chops with every single chord. Production on said riffage is massive, making it feel as if John Wayne Gacy is smashing your skull in with a blunt object. It is a non-stop, barbaric assault on your ear drums for 40 minutes straight.
Speaking of assaults, what even is this drum performance? The drummer’s name is ‘Lord Pork’ and he sure beats the everloving hell out of that kit. Tasty snares and towering double bass work never stops and you wonder how in the world this guy can make a drum kit make these monstrous noises with just one man doing all the work. The chemistry between the riffs and the drums mixed with the pristine production is to die for, and you just might die from the profuse bleeding from your ears after this beatdown.
Vocally, this album is a tad more decipherable than your typical brutal death metal. Don’t get it twisted though, the gurgling effect makes it sound as if this poor fellow just had his throat slit in a gruesome attack. They’re almost like an extra instrument that gives off a “noisy” effect not typical in this kind of music. It may sound like a mess, but boy is it glorious. All of these elements combined make the whole album sound dense as hell, but not in a dissodeath kind of way.
Involuntary Surrender is exactly what the title suggests. You cannot surrender and Porkfarm forces these riffs, blasts, and burps down your throat with every second that passes, each one becoming more unbearably sick as the last. The album art perfectly depicts the feeling of the music itself. It’s as if you’re being stalked by a bloodthirsty, backwoods hillbilly. Once he catches you, you’re just a playtoy until he decides to dispose of your worthless remains. This is dummy death metal, yeah, hope you’re not a person that’s faint of heart.
