Cannibal Corpse Create Modern Death Metal Masterpiece

Cannibal Corpse vocalist George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher often describes the band’s music and lyrics as being comparable to what is found in a bloody horror movie. To build on that analogy, if Tomb of the Mutilated is the band’s horror equivalent to Saw, then the new recording, Evisceration Plague, is more along the lines of Nightmare on Elm Street. The album is a death metal masterpiece.

The band’s eleventh studio release takes a more groove-oriented direction than its predecessors. And while the songs are slower in places, the music is more technical and heavier than ever. This is best shown on title track, “Evisceration Plague”, which opens with crunching guitars, followed by a slow and grinding bass/drum groove led by long-time bassist and songwriter, Alex Webster. Then Fisher comes in with staccato vocals that fit in with the groove perfectly and complete the crushing whole.

I would argue that “Evisceration Plague” is the perfect death metal song.
Webster is a skilled musician who knows his music theory, and it shows on the album. Songs are filled with subtle nuances that will go unnoticed by the casual observer, but on repeat listens become more apparent.

The album never gets dull due to the band’s constant variation of tempo. The tracks “To Decompose” and “A Cauldron of Hate” feature driving guitars and drums, which alternate between slow and fast sections.

“Scalding Hail,” is blindingly fast and clocks in at less than two minutes in length. Its appearance early on in the album lets you know that the guys haven’t lost their ability to write speeding riffs, despite slowing things down now and again.

“Carnivorous Swarm,” is a technical monster that is filled with complex guitar-work and vicious blast-beats. The guitars are layered in a manner that makes them sound like a swarm of deadly creatures getting ready to launch out of the speakers and rip the flesh right off of your bones.

With all of the great musicianship, it would be easy for Fisher’s vocals to fall in the background of things, but instead the complete opposite occurs. His trademark growls act as an instrument that is as important to the music as the guitars or drums.

Album opener “Priests of Sodom”, in which Fisher layers both deep-throated growls and higher pitched Chuck Schuldiner-like vocals, is one of his best performances to date. On several of the songs the vocal parts are somehow catchy, despite being mostly inaudible.

Cannibal Corpse is known for having gruesome lyrics and songs such as “Skewered from Ear to Eye” leave little to the imagination.

Boring through the brain, eye impaled on the point
Steel spears crisscross your greymatter.
Puncturing the eardrum and the blood begins to ooze,
Red blooms grace the dying head.

That being said, the lyrics on this album are actually toned down when compared to older Chris Barnes-era albums which were occasionally too extreme for their own good.
Evisceration Plague marks a milestone in Cannibal Corpse’s career and is sure to join the ranks of my favorite death metal albums, right alongside Death’s The Sound of Perseverance and Morbid Angel’s Domination.

Even those who are not heavily into death metal should check it out, as it just might sway your mind.

Rating: **** 1/2 bloody stars out of *****