Vermin Womb - Decline review
Band: | Vermin Womb |
Album: | Decline |
Style: | Death metal, Grindcore |
Release date: | October 28, 2016 |
A review by: | Auntie Sahar |
01. Entomb
02. Industrialist
03. Disrepair
04. Present Day
05. Rank & File
06. Pitiless
07. Age Of Neglect
08. Inner World
09. Slave Money
10. Cancer
Getting hit in the face with a sledgehammer is, in all likelihood, not an overly pleasant experience. However, some have been known to enjoy the fine art of masochism, and their preference should not be discounted.
Vermin Womb are the aural equivalent of that sledgehammer. The newest band fronted by the monstrous Ethan McCarthy (ex-Clinging To The Trees Of A Forest Fire, Withered, Primitive Man), in 2014 this trio hit the ground running with the deadly Permanence EP, and this year's Decline debut only keeps the blitzkrieg train a'rollin. Essentially grindcore with subtle shades of sludge and black metal type riffing, here Vermin Womb prove themselves to be a total steamroller of a band, capable of channeling some of the nastiest aspects of all three areas for a truly imposing and uncompromising formula (just give the filthy "Slave Money" a listen).
With some musicians who play in multiple bands, each comes to take on its own unique identity, but this isn't quite the case with Ethan McCarthy, whose trademark "blackened sludgegrind" sound seems to run consistently throughout all of his work. Vermin Womb being no exception, it's best to perhaps understand Decline in comparison to what's come before it. What makes this album shine isn't really originality or an impressive mood variation. Start to finish, it's just one giant ball of all out ferocity. The trick though is the different ways in which that ferocity is applied. Sometimes it's balls to the wall speed, a la CTTOAFF or Death Of Self ("Entomb," "Disrepair"). At other points the slower sound in which the sludge and BM come out more takes precedence, sounding closer to Primitive Man, and this approach is equally as crushing ("Age Of Neglect, "Cancer"). Clearly, McCarthy and company understand that "violent" can have many different manifestations.
The current lineup of Vermin Womb, with the exception of drummer Patrick Fiorentino, is exactly the same as the final CTTTOAFF lineup. So in a way, this band could be seen as one that has risen from CTTOAFF's ashes. But far from being an outright clone, Vermin Womb also incorporates a lot of the slower, "meatier" touches from some of McCarthy's previous work into the creation of a sound that, while not the next !T.O.O.H.!, is still considerably fresh and deliciously relentless. Nevermind those troublesome bits of metal that pop your bike tires as you're cruising down the street. This is the "us" that you want to be one of.
You've been a very bad human being. You deserve no less than a very fitting punishment.
Rating breakdown
Performance: | 8 |
Songwriting: | 9 |
Originality: | 7 |
Production: | 8 |
Written by Auntie Sahar | 15.10.2016
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