By John Bedard
I know Carcass has been around for a long time, and I know I really should have listened to them before now. In my defence, metal this heavy really is not that big over here in the States. This means my exposure to metal is based mostly on what people recommend rather than natural discovery over the radio. People tend not to recommend well-known bands because they take it for granted that you probably already know them. So, now that I have wasted time defending my own inadequacies, what do I think about my first introduction to Carcass? I will tell you later but first, let’s talk about the vocals.
The vocal style is exactly what I was expecting. It has that heavily distorted scream like tone would expect rather than the darker growl tone that many bands do. While I like both styles I definitely prefer this higher style. There is a lot of power, drive, and aggression in every note. On top of that, this stands out as a particularly good example of the style. Making this a particularly memorable entry into the genre.
Musically, things get even better. There is so much evolution in every track, especially with the guitars. All the way from the standard heavy repeated measures we expect in the genre but often opening up to almost melodic leads or uncharacteristically complex rhythms that add a lot of variety to the whole experience. This makes the whole thing feel very complete and never gets boring.
Like I said above, this is my first introduction to the band and it is just an EP, not even a full album; but I think this was an excellent place to get started. I have a lot more to check out now. This will absolutely be on my playlists in the future and it is worth your time to pick up as well.
- ‘Despicable’ is out now. You can get your copy HERE.
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