TERROR CORPSE

As much as it brings metalheads of a certain disposition immense and lasting joy, the death metal scene's ongoing expansion does have its drawbacks. There are only so many hours in the day that can be reasonably spent exploring the thousands of bands currently out there making a horrible racket, and so fans will have to use discernment and discretion to get to the most potent strains of this new, fruitful era. Generally speaking, the old tape-trading ethos still applies, at least for those who are serious about their death metal foraging: recommendations, endorsements and familial connections are arguably the safest and most reliable factors needed to find the best new bands. Ultimately, being a death metal fan can be easily reduced down to a simple question: who do you trust? Well, you can trust Dobber Beverly. A significant force in the underground for the last two decades, the OCEANS OF SLUMBER drummer (and creative driving force) has been a reliable force for extreme metal excellence for a long time now. With such leading lights as grindcore icons INSECT WARFARE and doomed-out death heads MALIGNANT ALTAR on his resume, the Texan's reputation is formidable and his lust for new ways to crush skulls has never wavered. Ostensibly a bid to revive the ancient spirit of Texan death metal, TERROR CORPSE are his latest vehicle, and death metal fans of any generation will be shitting blood in response to "Ash Eclipses Flesh": a phenomenal piece of work that casually harks back to the days when nearly every credible DM band had their own, distinctive style. Neither rooted in nostalgia, nor a kneejerk response to modern death metal's clipped precision, "Ash Eclipses Flesh" is simply an honest and heartfelt attempt to bring dark, destructive and discombobulating heaviness back to this most monstrous of genres.

The first thing that hits is the overall sound. There are plenty of bands peddling some kind of old-school reconstruction, and "Ash Eclipses Flesh" is clearly rooted in the pitch-black terrorism of the '90s, but this is a demonstrably superior act of death metal purity. The drums actually sound like drums. The guitars are bass heavy and pulverizing. The vocals are hellish, ugly and feral. The whole thing sounds alive and real, and TERROR CORPSE are clearly driven by devotion to the unholy greats, from CELTIC FROST and POSSESSED through to INCANTATION and AUTOPSY. Older death metal freaks will be instantly won over, because these songs ooze bona fide malevolence and madness, but given how the Texas scene has given us the likes of FROZEN SOUL, TRIBAL GAZE and UNIVERSALLY ESTRANGED in recent times, younger legions have been subtly primed to embrace TERROR CORPSE with alacrity too.

The difference here is that Beverly's band have no interest in adopting modern methods to express their disgust. Instead, "Ash Eclipses Flesh" is a shocking, vomitous assault sent straight from the depths of sun-ravaged hell. Songs like "Pyre of Ash and Bone", "Gate Zero" and "Fallout Obliteration" weave thick and treacly webs of riffing and brutality delivered with plenty of vicious blastbeats and stomach-turning dips into downtempo sludge. The catchiness that typified death metal in the '90s is discernible too, although TERROR CORPSE are too uncompromising and twisted to be truly accessible. Abominable highlights include the harrowing, schizophrenic slurry of "Blissful Incineration" and the utterly foul descent into the inferno that is "Sons of Perdition", but the truth about this record is that not a second is wasted and every last eruption of grotesque and gruesome savagery resounds with warped sincerity. Even a closing cover of CELTIC FROST's none-more-seminal "Into the Crypt of Rays" feels more like additional fuel for the Texans' fire than a simple tribute.

"Ash Eclipses Flesh" is one of this year's most lethally effective death metal albums, and an unexpected breath of disgusting, old-school air to be savored as winter's talons drag us all into the icy abyss. Don't fuck with TERROR CORPSE, kids. They will eat your soul for fun.