GRINDMINDED

Fairly rote death metal from the Netherlands, GRINDMINDED dishing up the kind of simple, third-tier grind CD destined to wind up in the $5 clearance box in your favorite metal distro in the back of a concert hall. Riffs are rudimentary, vocals unremarkable, and the songs differentiated only by what gear the drummer's in — here a blast, there a thrash polka, and once in a while a little midtempo for ersatz atmosphere.

The thing is, while it's impossible to say GRINDMINDED are doing anything the world really needed, it must be pointed out that they're a competent, reasonably catchy band and that they acquit themselves well here. Those looking for a new run through old death metal conventions, without anything so annoying as a unique take on them, will find "Domestic Violence" satisfying in a low-watt kind of way. Calling it "generic" almost seems too harsh — it seems pretty deliberate that the band is creating middle-of-the-road death metal with no frills or outside influences. It's just that the results, while nobly true to the cause, are also fairly unremarkable.

There's not much else to say — GRINDMINDED can blast like DERANGED or dish up slower numbers a la GOREFEST, they deliver suitably offensive lyrics and imagery, and there's nary a clean vocal, violin, or hardcore part to be found. If you buy records solely on your own personal scale of integrity points, this will be a mandatory purchase for you. But there's just no getting around the overall lack of personality here — and there's too much great music out there to spend time and money on the willfully average.