Septage – Septic Worship (Intolerant Spree Of Infesting Forms) Review

“Get in, loser. We’re going grinding…”

That’s what Septic Worship says to me from the first instant, the opening five-second blastfest of the wonderfully titled “Inauguration Of Septic Tank Release And Epic Faecal Sludge Chug-Off.” Blastbeats, overlapping burping vomitous growls, squalling guitars, no real riff save just cacophony… Ah, the sounds of grindcore…

From there, though, that last bit resolves itself quite nicely into something bigger and better: Septage is nothing if not deceptively riffy, throwing plenty of carving death metal-y tremolo pickings amongst the oozing and fetid proceedings. “Septic Baptism” sports many a strong riff, chunky and scalpel-sharp in equal form, even with a spindly little bass breakdown in the middle, before the song downshifts into a forceful and damned-near irresistible steamroller gait. The super-icky “Bushmeat Banquet” churns along at a nearly doomy pace, all low and slow with some wonderfully slippery bass work that slides neatly into the phased-out and trippy interlude “Transilience Of Parasitic Infestation (Septic Engorgement).” Throughout Septic Worship, bursts of “lead” guitar paint around the edges, mostly just divebomb screeches and squeals to add flavor to the festering mass of slicing riffs. Handled by all three members, the vocals are pitch-shifted gurgles, with one notable Araya-n scream piercing through “Haris ve Afir Dalyarakların Hazin Sonu (Nihai İnfilak).” Closing track “Başkasının Kusmuğu” concludes with a Cliff Burton-y killer bass solo for color, wrapping up 20 minutes of no frills, no bullshit gory death/grind in fine gurgly fashion.

Septage’s previous two EPs were both strong examples of early-Carcass-leaning gore-spattered death / grind, the second a little stronger than the first, so they’re on the upward arc. With that in mind, it’s no surprise that, now that they’ve gotten around to a full-length affair, Septic Worship is yet another forward step. (For those keeping track at home, both songs on their 2022 split with Hyperdontia appear here, as well.)

No, Septage doesn’t break any new ground really – this is goregrind, after all – but all of their work, and especially this one, is absolutely a bloody blast that fits snugly within the established parameters of the style, and does so with ample skill and reverence and professionalism. Handily one of my favorite beautifully nauseating releases of 2024 so far, alongside Hemorrhoid’s Raw Materials Of Decay, Septic Worship is one hell of a goregrind good time, which is exactly what I expected and exactly what I wanted, and anyone else with a penchant for all things gross and riffy will find much to like in this pile of rotting flesh.

So get in, friends… and let’s go grinding.