Monstrosity’s seventh album, Screams From Beneath the Surface (Metal Blade Records) finds the Tampa Death Metal band not just trying to recapture the expected sound of the region, but blending brutality and technical prowess into something relevant in 2026. This means not writing what seems to be the best riff to rip a guitar solo over, but caring about the songs they are crafting. They do not get lost in the ever-shifting nature of their intricate attack.
Photo credit: Tim Hubbard
When it comes to the vocals, this can be the most limiting aspect of the genre. Here, it gets the job done, but the most important aspect is that the lyrics are articulated so they can be understood enough for the story to come across. While they are more technical than your average death metal band, but not bogged down by my athletic displays of time signature changes, but instead beat your skull with a wide arsenal of riffs. Having been in the game long enough to know when they need to just lock into a chug. The bass player is the secret weapon here as the bass lines are everflowing, but not rechnical for the sake of being so.
“Fortunes Engraved in Blood” often reminds me of what a more refined Cannibal Corpse might sound like, in other words, “Paths of Possession.” Not as many melodic guitar harmonies, and more emphasis is placed on the syncopation of the drummer. The influence of Thrash on what they do is obvious; the riffing is very tightly chugged, and they are not hitting you with a blunt barrage of blast beats to get the point across. “Vapors” is almost anthemic in places. Their songs tend to fall along the three-minute mark, though they make the most of each minute. This is where they stick closest to a classic model of the genre, despite half of the album being recorded at Morrisound Studios.
There is a powerful march to “The Thorns.” Lee Harrison’s drumming is top-tier, though it has to be to play this caliber of death metal. “Blood Work” is the first high-speed, hyper-aggressive blast, though even then it is giving itself room to breathe in more melodic passages, and never is there just a mindless blur of sound passing you by in the name of brutality. Things get more deliberate for “The Dark Aura”. Harrison’s double bass is played very tastefully to shape the dynamics, and the guitar solos are approached in a similar way. The last song is the only moment on the album that feels more closely aligned with Tampa OSDM expectations; even then, it is really well done. If you are looking for classic death metal that is not stuck in yesterday, then this album is worth your time.
Buy the album here:
https://metalblade.indiemerch.com/products/monstrosity-screams-from-beneath-the-surface-orange-smoke-vinyl-12
9 / 10
WIL CIFER
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