Band:	Entombed
Album:	Uprising
Style:	Death 'N' Roll
Release date:	2000
Guest review by:	Stuart

01. Seeing Red
02. Say It In Slugs
03. Won't Back Down
04. Insanity's Contagious
05. Something Out Of Nothing
06. Scottish Hell [Dead Horse Cover]
07. Time Out
08. The Itch
09. Year In, Year Out
10. Returning To Madness
11. Come Clean
12. In The Flesh

This was supposed to be a comeback album for the band after their very average release "Same Difference", which completely lacked that unique Entombed sound. It was recorded on a minimal budget and was intended to be a pure, raw and unadulterated piece of Death 'n' Roll like only Entombed can possibly produce. And without any doubt they definitely pulled it off.

The album gets going with the high intensity and aggression inducing "Seeing Red", a masterful play of good hard rock riffs sped up to a decent, frantic metal pace. They keep the great vibe going with the second track "Say It in Slugs" with a pumping distorted bass intro that seems to get heavier as the song goes along, although they do seem to wonder pointlessly off into the daisies for awhile. The album really starts off excellently and maybe gets you a little too excited as it does taper off slightly in the middle section but it comes back strong on some of the latter tracks. There is also a great cover of "Scottish Hell" originally by the band Dead Horse.

The lyrics are generally contemplative throughout and come across from the point of view someone who has been "in this scene" for a very long time: "I'm tired of hating, and feeling down, my ears, they're bleeding, and I'm getting old" or "I promote a lifestyle, You/I can't really live", yet they still keep that wicked sense of humour: "I killed my best friend with a hammer, now I'm in stitches" or "I bang my head to sleep, with a bottle of bourbon-hell". Either way it is great stuff.

"The Itch" epitomizes everything Entombed do so well with its plodding, blues rock vibe and also has an interesting take on the despondent reflections of a long time drug user, whereas "Come Clean" tackles the same subject far more aggressively yet with and equal sense of hopelessness. "Returning to Madness" is a great example of how a slow, simplistic riff can be used to evoke both a dark ambience as well as an insatiable hatred.

There is dark organ intro to the final track "In the Flesh" creating a haunting atmosphere as the song develops into slow, emotive and anguished dissection of "the scene", society and their relation to the individual. This may not be the fastest album ever but there is no doubt it is definitely an incredibly heavy album. It has moments of real seriousness and also moments of complete silliness both musically and lyrically and that, for me at least, is a really great combination.