Album Review: Gruesome – Savage Land

Gruesome, comprised of members of Exhumed, Possessed, Malevolent Creation and Dekerta, is a flashback to early death metal. Their debut album Savage Land  recaptures the heavy thrash influence, distinguished growled vocals, and even the gory album art that characterized the first wave of death metal. The drumming and riffing styles are lightning speed shredfests, all overlapped by the furious roar of Matt Harvey (Exhumed, Repulsion). Slower tempos erupt into fast-paced fury, perfect  for breakneck-speed, whiplash inducing headbanging.  Aggressive percussion, infectious hooks in the bass and guitars, and intricate solos all intertwine, making this album spectacular.

Gruesome screams old school, not only musically but also through their attitude and aesthetics. Their band logo is particularly impressive. Inverted crosses, flames, eyeballs, spiders and webs are all integrated into the design, like they were trying to cram as much creepy stuff as possible into one symbol. The grim artwork also echoes the strange, macabre, and primitive style of 80’s metal album covers. The lyrics are similarly dark and grotesque, but sometimes they sound like they were chopped up and rearranged to keep the rhyme schemes and metric rhythms intact. Although a listener unfamiliar with early death metal would find some of the choruses or couplets somewhat cheesy and awkward, most fans would recognize that such coarseness makes Gruesome sound authentically old school. All of these artistic details augment the spot-on emulation of 80’s metal, making Savage Land surpass the shadow of nostalgia and earning it a spot amongst other classic masterpieces such as Scream Bloody Gore.

Savage Land is available on Bandcamp, where you can purchase it as a digital album, CD, or even cassette tape. Although I commend Savage Land for being a fitting homage to masters and pioneers like Death, I admit that it brings nothing new to the table. However, it’s great for what it is: A tribute to an irreplaceable scene that defined metal and continues to inspire us.   Four stars out of five.