What is Ectoplasm? Well, Ectoplasm, (from the Greek ektos, meaning “outside,” and plasma, meaning “something formed or molded”) is a term coined by Charles Richet (probably a dickhead) to denote a substance or spiritual energy “exteriorized” by physical mediums. Ectoplasm is said to be associated with the formation of spirits. Ectoplasm is considered by some to be a hoax, fashioned from cheesecloth, gauze or other natural substances. (I stole most of this from Wikipedia.) Even famous people like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, author of Sherlock Holmes and that whole The Lost World book weighed in on the alleged phenomenon, claiming it was, “a viscous, gelatinous substance which appeared to differ from every known form of matter in that it could solidify and be used for material purposes.”
Although unaccepted by modern science, or really any science, Ectoplasm continues to be a super awesome subject explored in horror films about the paranormal. Now. when I hear “Ectoplasm” I think of one thing and one thing only, “He slimed me.” I think of Dr. Venkman rolling around on the ground covered in what looks like snot before being called off by Egon to hurry into the ballroom to attempt to catch that “nasty little bugger.” I also think of Ectoplasmic residue and poor Dr. Venkman being ordered to get samples of it substance in the basement of the New York Public Library. Which brings me to my main point, ECTO COOLER.
I’m sure that as a child you saw Slimer flying across your screen and yelled out, “I’d like to drink that, mum!.” Better yet, what if it came in a gigantic can that had no way of being opened other than a triangular puncture machine that allowed for no reseal so you had to consume all of that sugar in one sitting? Sounds like a goddamn DREAM for any child under the age of 23, right? Interestingly, originally released way back in nineteen hundred and eighty-nine, Ecto Cooler saw a reissue in 2016. Was it a form of nostalgia or did Hi-C just really have a good feel on the pulse of the death metal scene? I guess only time will tell.
Cavern of Foul Beings is the second LP from Greek death metal quartet Ectoplasma (why they add the extra ‘a’ will forever be a mystery). Sliding away from the Incantation clone Greek death metal we’ve all come to know and love, Ectoplasma leans more towards the sound of early Grave recordings, particularly their sophomore release You’ll Never See. Full of practical riffs and graven vocals, Ectoplasma mimic their namesake flowing with snot-like lugubriousness across tracks with a multitude of parts and intervals.
Label: Memento Mori.
Borrowing from acts such as Autopsy, Ectoplasma understands the value of a solidly placed B-Movie sample. “Reanimated In Trioxin” provides a great example with “Brains. I need brains!” heralding the impending approach of what promises to be a banger of a death metal track. And, it delivers, perhaps beyond expectations. Here the quartet shows the skill of composition to swap from palm-muted, thick riffs that demand head-banging, to faster passages that decay into guitar solos before blasting off into whammy-bar squeals and chunneling low-end heavy guitars.
As you should understand by now, Ectoplasma isn’t reinventing the death metal wheel (here we refer to “wheel” as the torture device rather than the revolutionary circle that took a bunch of moronic humans like FOREVER to invent). And, as so many of us death metal stalwarts have said, it’s really not that important to constantly demand progress from a genre that’s main focus is pummeling walls and heads with riff after riff after riff after, well, riff. Ectoplasma are an absolute blast and while they may end up missing year end lists like other great death metal acts (Casket Huffer, Spinebreaker, etc.) it doesn’t mean that these albums aren’t worth spinning again and again. Cavern of Foul Beings is an album very adept at what it does well and what it does well is called death metal.
Drink a full can of Ecto Cooler. Expel that energy headbanging to this noise.
