Originally written by Erik Thomas
Yes I know this came out in 2002, and Belgian grind stalwarts have since released the excellent Manmadepredator, but The Spew is exceedingly slow, and since they sent it, I will review, plus a little more publicity for Belgium’s favorite sons is always a good thing. Featuring musical workaholic Sven (Aborted, InQuest), Leng Tch’e (A Japanese form of torture)are classic grind, in the sense that they are listenable, groovy and have their tongue firmly planted in cheek, and the requisite double digit song listing is also prevalent. “Strangled By Underwear”, “Straight Outta Boerecote”, “Mosh Of The Clowns”, “Fuck Eddy De Dapper”, should clue you in as to the approach of the band, and those in need of a direct comparison, look no further than Blood Duster; deep grooves, slick blast beats and the burp/screamed vocals are all in full force here.
(Note: Wow, it’s hard reverse comparing an old album to a newer album that came out after the album you are reviewing)
So here it goes, if you own Manmadepredator, I’ll do some reverse comparison for you; Death by a Thousands Cuts, isn’t quite as…chunky, has less songs, it isn’t as tightly played, and I wouldn’t really consider it a must have if you have the superior Manmadepredator. And while both albums have their share of samples and humor, Manmadepredator seems to have deadlier sheen to its attack. The songs “T.P” (an ode to the vastly outdated Beavis and Butthead), and the George Carlin laced “I Know Where You’ve Shit Last Summer”, while mildly humorous, just would have sounded out of place on Manmadepredator. A natural maturation seems to have occurred between albums, and while Leng Tch’e will never be a serious band, their songs show some growth between albums. But lets be honest here, this is grindcore, there’s not much you can do with it, but what little play there is within the genre, Leng Tch’e are probably the most proficient at it, and experts of mixing stout grooves and face ripping razor grind. Just check out “Cockporn”. (The song that is).
Sven and company are experts of the genre, and Death by a Thousand Cuts is a prime example, even a year after its release. Personally I thought Manmadepredator was better, but that’s to be expected. Now on Willowtip (who get their promos out the year the album was released), I’d look for Leng Tch’e to carry the genre’s flag until Blood Duster pull their finger out, but even then Leng Tch’e is going to give them some serious competition as they hone their art.
I’d love to be more detailed, but to be honest this is a review I’d much rather forget. Bluntly, if you like Leng Tch’e you could do without this, as the newer album essentially follows suite, but if you are a new Leng Tch’e fan or new grindcore fan that had no idea this was their debut album, go ahead and get it.
Good, dirty, slashing fun.
Note to The Spew Records-please get promos to us in the actual year you want them reviewed, OK?