Originally written by Dan Staige.
I guess it is possible for humans to live on no sleep at all. At least that’s the case w/ Cannibal Corpse. These guys have to be the busiest band in death metal today. If they’re not touring the entire earth, then they are in the studio creating solid and progressive music. And they always seem to have the album out when it is supposed to come out……..none of this 2 month to 4 month delay bullshit that so many bands seem to pulling off nowadays. And immediately after their album is released, they restart the brutal non-stop touring schedule again. And from what I have seen, they absolutely do not disappoint at any of their shows. Work-a-holics and dedicated to pleasing their fans…….Very hard to find in the music industry today. So many people seem to be criticizing this band for reasons of monotonous music. Obviously, they have not taken the time to pull themselves away from their “mall-core” nu-metal to actually listen to the recording history of this great band and recognize the astonishing musical progression that has taken place here. Then there is the completely and utterly exhausted issue of “Barnes vs. Fisher”. They changed lead singers a long time ago. Get over it and listen to the incredible music that is being generated while you whiners sit around hoping for a “Cannibal-Barnes” reunion. You have a better chance of scoring w/ your favorite porn star before such a reunion takes place….. I’d just like to say that I am huge fan of CC, and I thought Bloodthirst was going to be a chore-and-a-half to top. I thought all the sick song titles and lyrics would be used up. I thought they had reached their maximum potential musically. I didn’t think they’d be able to come up w/ any more riffs that sounded fresh. I didn’t think they would ever get any more technical then they had previously displayed. I was wrong. Horribly wrong. CC venture into a new realm of technicality & speed on Gore Obsessed. Two albums came to mind after my 1st listen to Gore Obsessed……..Cryptopsy’s “Whisper Supremacy” & Carcass’ “Heartwork”, both of which are in my top 10 metal albums of all-time. Gore Obsessed is definitely an album that takes a handful of spins in your cd player to actually start sinking in. I recommend doing this w/ a good set of headphones. This way you will actually be able to hear how thick, layered, and strong the guitar work is on here. There are a couple of real surprises on Gore Obsessed. The 1st one that comes to mind is track #10, entitled “When Death Replaces Life”. It’s unusually slow tempo reminds me of their classic instrumental “From Skin to Liquid” off of Gallery of Suicide back in 1998. The other is the awesome cover of Metallica’s “No Remorse” after the last song. Very catchy song re-done w/ undeniable Corpse crunch & artificial harmonics. CC have definitely tightened up as a unit w/ their latest offering. An avid Corpse fan will recognize the “instant classic potential” of “Pit of Zombies”. This song will get the head a noddin’, especially after the breakdown slows down and starts grinding, then slows down some more. “Compelled to Lacerate” is my new favorite Corpse song. The “stomp-groove” is what makes this song what it is. It also has very unique time and tempo changes, which drummer Paul Mazurkiewicz takes responsibility for w/ his cymbal work. The smooth transition from “Hung and Bled” to “Sanded Faceless” is trademark Corpse style. The riffs in “Sanded Faceless” are just pure death metal, and they are fresh. The thing about Cannibal Corpse is that when they start on a grind-groove or a killer “notey” riff, they don’t dwell on it for very long, which, in turn, has me putting several songs on repeat for extended periods of time. They have their own unique down-tuned guitar sound, and Pat O’Brien and Jack Owen have cranked up the speed & technicality on this album. They have crammed a number of quality riffs and grooves into each song. And it is reasonably tougher to follow than previous releases. The thing about Owen & O’Brien is that they continue to churn out horror inducing sounds from their instruments. It actually sounds like real “scary” death metal. There is an excellent harmony at the beginning of “Mutation of the Cadaver” that displays musical talent on behalf of the guitarists and bassist Alex Webster. And don’t count out vokillist George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher. He gets a lot of shit from unappreciative fans for being too “enunciated” compared to former vocalist Chris Barnes. But Fisher’s vocal patterns are what make him unique. Rather odd at first, but after a few listens, just perfect. Besides, Corpse fans wouldn’t want anything simple or predictable. The band that so many people dismiss for “staying the same” has done just that……..they have kept their original sound and style, but have continued to build on that style and improve tightness, speed and technicality. They have taken their style and expanded it. They have not incorporated any outside influences to a great degree. They have just gotten better at what they do. Any self-proclaimed “musician” that cannot appreciate the effort it takes to record numerous guitar riffs of this style and speed over one another and keep it this tight is simply not a musician. There are just too many elements about this album that make it good for me to possibly list here in this review. Every member has improved at their role in creating quality, complex death metal. Cannibal Corpse has their own style and they each apply their own creativity and skills to forge ahead into new areas of the death genre. I really think Corpse has the ability to become the ultimate death metal MONSTER…….Gore Obsessed is an excellent, solid release that will be rattling my eardrums in immense proportions for a long time to come. Pick this up or get a “Hatchet to the Head”.
