“Honey?” She creeps through the kitchen to a door that stands open but a crack, dull light streaming up from the cellar. Her husband’s workshop. He’s been spending an awful lot of time down there lately. She fears for his mental stability, but he swears that he is simply focused on his work.Continue reading
Italian brutal death metallers The Juliet Massacre is streaming their new album Human Abuse in its entirety below.
Human Abuse Track Listing
01: Human Abuse
02: Earth Annihilation
03: Chocking the Last Breath – feat. Alessandro Falà
04: Drown in the Dust
05: Suffering in a Lake of Solitude
06: The Tragedy of the Guns – feat. Julien Truchan
07: Beaten & Killed
08: Her Violated Body
09: Freedom of Speech
10: Slam Against the Injustice – feat. Radim
11: Gli anni di piombo
The Juliet Massacre is…
Antonio “Antomega” – vocals
Alessandro “Alex Gore” – vocals
Claudio “The Killer” – guitar
Luchino “Jubbino” – bass
Andrea “Pelle” – drums
Sabatino “Sab” – guitar
The Juliet Massacre on Facebook
The Juliet Massacre on Twitter
The Juliet Massacre on YouTube
The Juliet Massacre on Instagram
While musical communities seem to vehemently deny that image has any impact on how they feel about certain bands, it’s almost impossible not judge which new album or a band is worth the time based on this very thing. Which brings us to Benighted. Their artwork and logo have hardly been an attempt to distinguish themselves from the hundreds of mediocre brutal death metal bands that churn out song after song, finishing with an album that better serves more as a spot the difference exercise than an enjoyably diverse entity. However, while their image is busy with clichés, their music stands as an entirely different beast.
That’s not to say they are smashing through the bounds of everything that makes death/grind what it is, but where Benighted shine is taking numerous well established elements and ramming them together into small timespans. Marking their 15th anniversary of this speed-induced musical decathlon race, the band has returned with their latest offering, live album Brutalive the Sick (Seasons of Mist) taken from their performance at the French Sylak Open Air in summer 2014.
Love or hate live albums, it is clear a lot of work has been put into this. Despite numerous line-up changes over the years on the bass, and most recently drums, this band are evidently boasting solid form as their tight performance shows little difference from recorded work. Particularly impressive is Julien Truchan’s vocals, backed up by Pierre Amoux. From gutturals to pig squeals, each style is executed with exceptional timing and ease, tying perfectly into frantic music racing along behind.
With the exception of the album title and the cries from the crowd between songs, you’d be forgiven for missing the fact this is recorded live. While it could be argued that Brutalive the Sick does not capture the true experience with their polished sound, there is a noticeable change in the production, an energy that is lacking on the studio works. While I can’t say it is different enough to justify existing fans rushing out and buying a copy, it does show that even after 15 years of releases Benighted are still working hard to earn their place in any extreme metal fans collection.
9.0/10
CAITLIN SMITH