Ain’t no surprises here.

Belgian miscreants Brutal Sphincter are here for two things: to pen gut-busting Goregrind that is filled with as much viscera as groove, and to inject quite a fair share of tongue-in-cheek humor. 

Sphinct-Earth Society (Time To Kill Records) could be shooed away by Metal elitists or people who don’t want to devote more than ten seconds to giving the album a shot. But in a way, Brutal Sphincter are the European version of Dying Fetus in that the grooves are more infectious than a virus and the guttural heft is arrogant yet fantastically crafted. 

On more than one occasion, the guitar tones mimic scratching a la early Slipknot, and it’s rare for the vocals to actually sound humane. The spew that bombards the microphone sound like it either just escaped an asshole or has been delivered by someone with a mouth full of soup.

“Persona Non-Greta” is actually mind-meltingly exquisite and “Crusta-Colada (Crack ‘N Kofola)” would be offensive and a waste of time if it weren’t so fucking gnarly in its instrumentations and tempos.

The riffing is always strong here, and the percussion especially does a stellar job of not getting out of control or dominating the runtime. “Tame” by Goregrind standards at times, it actually adds to the finished product in a way that allows listeners to focus more attention on the group as a whole.

“Tony Hawk’s Pro-Choice 2022” is sharp, caustic and dizzying, much like the heated debates that always surround abortion and the rights of women and others being directly dictated by penis-having, tone-deaf, out-of-touch old men. 

It’s understandable if one can’t get into Brutal Sphincter, but patient folks and Goregrind aficionados alike need only a few songs to see the picture this band is trying to create, and the steady flow of fiery rhythms and electrifying sequences might even distract you from what the lyrical content is actually about.

Buy the album here:
https://ffm.to/brutal-sphincter-sphinct-earth-society

8 / 10
MATT COOK
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