{"id":14402,"date":"2013-09-13T00:00:08","date_gmt":"2013-09-13T00:00:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=14402"},"modified":"2014-02-18T20:23:32","modified_gmt":"2014-02-18T20:23:32","slug":"album-review-carcass-surgical-steel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/album-review-carcass-surgical-steel\/","title":{"rendered":"CARCASS – Surgical Steel (2013) | Album \/ EP Reviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

CARCASS
Surgical Steel<\/strong><\/span>
\n\"\"
\nNuclear Blast (2013)<\/span>
Rating: 8\/10<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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And so here it is, the glorious (or should that read gore-ious!) return of Scouse sickos Carcass. It was only a matter of time before these UK cult metallers returned to the fray after leaving behind a fantastic back catalogue which bridged the gap between infected grindcore and metallic, clinical death metal. I have to say that I never expected Carcass to return to their blood clotted roots, and so the sound of Surgical Steel<\/em> is no real surprise then. <\/p>\n

When one considers that it\u2019s been 17 years since their last album, 1996\u2019s Swansong<\/em>, this new 11-track affair isn\u2019t too far removed from the murky ground that bridged the gap between that particular opus and 1993\u2019s Heartwork<\/em>. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s only natural and evolutionary that Carcass were not going to regress back to those gore-encrusted days of the first two albums \u2013 Reek Of Putrefaction<\/em> (1988) and Symphonies Of Sickness<\/em> (1989) \u2013 although there is a hint of 1991\u2019s Necroticism \u2013 Descanting The Insalubrious<\/em> as the band literally vomit out a hideous array of thrash-soaked riffs that were born in the early 90s. <\/p>\n

With the album opener \u20181985\u2019 being nothing more than a brief mournful guitar whine, we\u2019re soon choking on the rancid noise of \u2018Thrasher\u2019s Abattoir\u2019, and I\u2019m immediately struck by Daniel Wilding\u2019s drums, which do a hearty job of replacing those boots left by original skin thumper Ken Owen. <\/p>\n

Those expecting some kind of visitation to the 80s will be disappointed, because Surgical Steel<\/em> is very much a thrash record rather than a grisly grindcore opus. This is paraded with the cold steel churn of \u2018Cadaver Pouch Conveyor System\u2019, with guitarist Bill Steer and company crafting out some interesting, accessible melodies which wouldn\u2019t seem out of place on a Megadeth<\/a> record. While bassist Jeff Walker\u2019s vocals still spit out that noxious bile, there\u2019s no way of ignoring the modern dynamics on here which enable Carcass to slip between varying extreme metal styles. <\/p>\n

\u2018A Congealed Clot Of Blood\u2019 slows the pace as Walker\u2019s vocals grate alongside that steady rhythm section of devious guitars, which one moment breathe the same air as some of those classic New Wave Of British Heavy Metal bands, before descending into a doomier quagmire from which you can\u2019t escape. It\u2019s here the band effortlessly find the niche between Necroticism<\/em>\u2019s dank melody and Heartwork<\/em>\u2019s razor sharp musicianship, offering tight percussion and attractive riffs. <\/p>\n

\u2018The Master Butcher\u2019s Apron\u2019 ups the pace initially, but soon descends into a mediocre chug. Its weight allows it to flow, however, although its talons leave little effect on the skin.<\/p>\n

Track six is the oaken sounding \u2018Noncompliance To ASTM F 899-12 Standard\u2019, which originally has echoes of Swansong<\/em> until it hits the right tempo. The composition offers some disjointed structures which at first are about as accessible as a barbed wire tunnel, but the leads again boast that classic metal feel.<\/p>\n

This takes us to \u2018The Granulating Dark Satanic Mills\u2019 with its mournful chords which step into a rather mediocre thrash melody, again reminding me of Megadeth at their most accessible. In fact, apart from Walker\u2019s recognisable rasps, this track is one of the least effective numbers on the opus. It\u2019s also one which boasts the biggest groove, meaning that at this point the album appears a touch disjointed as it flits between Heartwork<\/em> and Swansong<\/em>. And if you thought the Megadeth similarities would have worn off by now, then check out the strains of \u2018Unfit For Human Consumption\u2019 which seems to hint at \u2019Deth classics \u2018Wake Up Dead\u2019 and \u2018Holy Wars\u2019, especially with that guitar attack. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s fair to say that despite some extremely solid numbers, the second part of the opus tends to disappoint, with the lukewarm \u2018316 L Grade Surgical Steel\u2019 and initial album teaser \u2018Captive Bolt Pistol\u2019 appearing as rather formulaic by today\u2019s standards. That\u2019s not to say that Surgical Steel<\/em> is a poor album \u2013 far from it. I can see this being a grower, but after seven listens I expected this to literally remove my scalp, extract my brain, and pop my eyeballs out. There\u2019s no doubting the musicianship, but the fact that this record seems to linger more in the realms of Heartwork<\/em> and, at times, early to mid 90s thrash, has surprised me a little. <\/p>\n

However, album closer \u2018Mount Of Execution\u2019 has a really epic feel to it, aided by the crisp production of Colin Richardson and Andy Sneap\u2019s mixing prowess. <\/p>\n

In a sense, the return of Carcass lives up to that cutting title and cold, grey album artwork, and it\u2019s certainly a record that will please those who were so let down by the band\u2019s initial farewell. I\u2019m sure that many will become overly excited about this release, but whether this compact composition is enough we\u2019ll have to wait and see.<\/p>\n

Surgical Steel<\/em> is a dry, witty record that celebrates the talent of Jeff Walker who seems to have stashed up all manner of ideas over the years since Swansong<\/em>. I could\u2019ve really turned this into a rambling review, but instead would rather let the music do the talking. My overall mark may disappoint some, but for me this opus is not as masterful as Necroticism<\/em>, although it\u2019s not afraid to nod to it either. Bring on the next appointment.<\/p>\n

Neil Arnold<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

CARCASSSurgical Steel Nuclear Blast (2013)Rating: 8\/10 And so here it is, the glorious (or should that read gore-ious!) return of Scouse sickos Carcass. It was only a matter of time before these UK cult metallers returned to the fray after leaving behind a fantastic back catalogue which bridged the gap between infected grindcore and metallic, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,755],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14402","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-album-ep-reviews","category-carcass"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14402","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14402"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14402\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17599,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14402\/revisions\/17599"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14402"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14402"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14402"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}