Sodom - Tapping The Vein

It's thrash-o-clock here at Lines in Wax! Its not often that I spin a thrash record, but when I do, you'd best be sure that it is a nasty thrash sound. Sodom always hit the spot every time, and I was reminded to write a little bit about them after catching them live briefly back in November. Tapping The Vein is a solid, denser-than-dark matter metal record, with a tight, condensed production and a dry, crisp sound. Sodom entering the 90s took on a more amped-up, terrifying sound; tighter and more brutal, much like the death metal stylings at the time, which have an obvious influence on this album, if only in the production job.

The tracks remain quite punky; that springy, almost sloppy hardcore drumming jars madly into the watertight song structures (almost in the same way as if you program a d-beat into a drum machine it just doesn't sound quite right). Highlights include the hat-trick of "Bullet in the Head", "The Crippler" and "Wachturn", as well as the excellent closing track, "Reincarnation". One has to wonder if Rage ATM took any "inspiration" from that "Bullet..." track, as the choruses are barked in a remarkably similar manner (the songs as a whole are entirely different however).

Decent bit of German thrash, my luvvies, with more-90s-than-the-90s art to go with it. Bonza!

Gutalax - Shitbeast

You can always count on porno/goregrind to keep things classy and hi-brow; to touch on society's most pressing issues and philosophical dilemmas. In the case of Gutalax's Shitbeast record, the maesters of flatulence ask the lifelong question: to dance or not to dance? With this many fart samples and songs about poo, the dilemma is a short lived one, as the answer is of course, yes. Shitbeast has enough tupa rhythms to get your gran dancing, and then some.

At this point in not only this review, but in my life as a whole, I'm starting to wonder if a track by track analysis is something I should even bother lending my time to here. I mean, these are songs about the brown stuff, perpetrated by a bunch of Europeans who wave toilet brushes around at their gigs. The particular nuances of said art-form's songwriting can probably wait, although I will quickly acknowledge that "Asswolf" is a fucking brilliant song. 

If you don't fall into the small category of people who like to gather in the Czech Republic once a year and wave dildos at each other whilst in a circle pit, then I can't imagine Gutalax is for you, you poor, poor, boring cunt, eh?.

Killbite - Discrimi-Nation

Killbite are a hardcore band out of Bremen in Germany, playing in the heavy, almost metal style rather than the punky, upbeat style of hardcore. Discrimi-Nation isn't a million miles away from the powerviolence sound; hard-hitting, dark, distorted, angry as fuck - there are many tracks here worthy of getting the pit moving, whilst a few others are more thought provoking and morose, especially the untitled closing number.

This is thoughtful, powerful hardcore music with a strong message. Asides from a 10" on German label Break The Silence, the band have been very dedicated to the DIY approach and this album is self-released on both CD and vinyl. Physical copies are available directly from the band. 

Corpse Eater - Unholy Massacre

Corpseater is a one man grindcore project from Germany, and Unholy Massacre is the second EP release, following 2015's Start To Mutilate. On first impressions I get a mix of Regurgitate meets the dirgy tones of Hymen Holocaust (without the pornogrind vibe, of course); Unholy Massacre is an undead-inspired, old school gory mess, with blasting drum machine work, filthy guitars and possibly pitchshifted, Mortician-style guttural vocals. 

Stand out tracks on this short EP include "Seven Million Slaughtered", which is the perfect balance of all of the above, but with a cheeky groove thrown in too, and the blastfest of "Slashing Throats In The Catacombs Of The Vatican". "Don't Settle For Mincecore" is probably my favourite; short, sharp and to the point! 

You can get this from the Corpse Eater Bandcamp page for a few Euros or check out the cassette release which is coming on Grindfather Productions. 

GUT - Spermanys Most Wanted

Spermanys Most Wanted (surely there should be an apostrophe on Spermany's?) is the first 7" EP / demo from now-legendary groovy grindcore band GUT. Technically, Drowing In Female Excrements came first as a hand-made cassette released by the band, but this 1992 EP was the first from the band on a label. GUT are credited with inventing the pornogrind sound, which is in its most primitive and infantile form here.

Due to the production on this thing, it almost sounds like a black metal record. If not for, of course, the trademark GUT gurgles and the sampling work holding it firmly in the dodgy world of grindcore. A few of the songs here would eventually go on to appear on the band's debut album Odour Of Torture, including a GUT favourite of mine, "Consequence".

Once upon a time I had this gem on vinyl, but alas I sold it (along with almost everything else) to live a less materialistic lifestyle. If I recall, the GUT EPs I had were some of the first things to be snapped up by collectors.

Satan's Revenge On Mankind - Goreblast

This was one of my first proper tastes of goregrind. I'd discovered the genre online, but this was one of the first records I actually owned, so it holds a special place in my heart (hahaha). Goreblast is an absolute festering mess of picollo snares, shifted vokills and all the fuzz in Germany (or is that Goremany?). Imagine Putrefaction In Progress-era LDOH but slowed down to a doom metal pace and with actual song structure. Throw in a couple of cheekily punky numbers and a myriad of weirdly blasphemous themes (not a usual staple of the goregrind genre, I'll be honest) and you've got Satan's Revenge On Mankind. The tray card reads "Satan's Revenge On Mankind is anti-vegetarian and pro-atom". That pretty much says it all really. On the inner by the disc is the slogan "Satan, Gore & Meat". That fucking NEEDS to be put on a t-shirt.

 

Opener "Vaticandestruction" is a sprawling wreck of a band warming up to disturbing samples, before said band burst into a hat-trick of SxRxOxMx classics; "We Come To Eat You" followed by "Gorevolution" and "Hyperbrutal Splattersatan". Some tracks fall into the comedic theme of something altogether more Anal Cunt ("I Hate Music", "I Hate Nature" and "Jesus Loves You Because He's Gay" as examples), whilst others spin off into something else entirely ("Invoking The Glorious Sado-Nuclear Extermination Of The Christian Plague" and "Infernal Christ Corpse Hacking Butcher Command On Behalf Of The Great Eternal Master Of Hell's Purifying Fire" anyone?). My personal favourite however is "Angels Taste Like Chicken". Groovy!

Throw in a bunch of awfully fantastic artwork and silly musician names and you have the recipe for the greatest goregrind in the universe. This was one of the first CDs that Rotten Roll did, and along with the Splatter Whore debut record, that label was off to a fucking flying start back in '06/7. So if you're into goregrind and are yet to hear the delights that The Almighty Mr. Goreblast and his band of heathen swine invoke, now is the time!

Splatter Whore / Bowel Stew - Split 7"

I absolutely love Splatter Whore. It's a bit sad they have gone rather quiet these days, but their first album remains one of my favourite goregrind (or grind'n'roll!) releases ever. I wasn't as fussed on the second album (with an almost completely different line up, I believe) but this split 7" with Bowel Stew showcases material that displays openly the transition between records. The sound is fantastic and extremely well produced. The band are tighter than a virgin's pootang and the vocals are an absolutely insane watery hell. If you love stuff like Rompeprop you need to check out this band.

 

Long-running gore legends Bowel Stew don't quite reach the heights of awesomeness of Splatter Whore, but it's still a good effort. Pairing the filth of goregrind up with something altogether more brutal death metal, Bowel Stew blast and gurgle through seemingly endless amounts of untitled songs (or is that just one long song?). The vocals are nuts, just like Splatter Whore, but the main put-off for me here is the snare sound, which is quite possibly the most annoying thing on the planet. I've not heard a more irritating and puzzling snare drum sound since The Berzerker's rather flaccid The Reawakening album.

 

As far as I know this isn't too difficult to obtain on black vinyl, although the brown vinyl is only limited to 100 copies and is long sold out, obviously. This was put out a good few years ago now on Rotten Roll Rex from Spermany. Check out the online store! Unfortunately there are no links for this release on YouTube. 

Redlight District Part I: The Black Edition - Torture Border / Kaelteeinbruch - Split CDr

This is the first CDr in the ongoing noise collection called "Redlight District" on Germany's Shit Noise Records. This is the only one so far I have seen that does not have a colour assigned to it (well, it's called the "black" edition, but still, black technically isn't a colour, and if the images were tainted black, surely they wouldn't be visible?). Limited to 50 hand numbered copies on CDr.

Torture Border open things up with a rumbling, bassy hum that eventually gives way to what sounds like distorted suffering. Screams, yelps, pleads and whining come forth in glorious stereo, all overlapping and mangled underneath the humming, droning noise. Kaelteeinbruch, who appears as the second band on every single volume of the Redlight series, cuts in with a much harsher sound, which initially has me turning my car stereo down. Holy fuck I nearly crashed listening to this! 

GUT / Rompeprop - Split 7"

GUT sounds absolutely huge on vinyl, I just wish they'd stop fucking around and play some more grind! I love the fun element of modern GUT whereas a lot of goregrinders shun them now, but on this record for the most part it's a template of "typical porn sample followed by uninspired five-to-ten second song with silly vocals". I am glad that I didn't shell out the earth for the original CD version of this, and I even commend Everydayhate for putting this on wax. Not to mention, "Nympho is a Gee" is my all time favourite GUT song (either that or "The Taboo Room"). But, unfortunately, the rest of the GUT side is massively disappointing, and often boring.

 

Rompeprop on the other hand simply cannot be faulted. Open up the sleeve and see written "If you think harmonizer / pitchshifter-vocals are fake, so is your distortion on your guitar!". That couldn't be more right! Big up the pitchshifted vokills! After the hilarious opener "Hallo!", Rompeprop gurgle'n'slam through some excellent polka-dance inducing goregrind for us all. 'Nuff said. Spin this, get up, wiggle back and forth and point those fingers.

 

Out on 500 copies, all of which may be white, I am not sure. I have number 234 / 500.

Redlight District Part IV: The Purple Edition - Painburn / Kaelteeinbruch - Split CDr

This is Volume 4 in the ongoing and extremely extensive noise series entitled "Redlight District" by German record label Shit Noise Records, who really do have a does-what-it-says-on-the-tin attitude. Each release is identifiable by a new colour, and number 4 (or is that IV) is purple. Limited, as always with this series, to 50 hand numbered copies.

Painburn open the disc with what seems like a harsh noise-meets-instrument experimentation. Underneath the garbled layers of hell are what seems to be like fuzzy tones breaking through, like a guitar or bass mangled beyond belief. This may or may not be the case, but that's what it sounds like. Other than that, the harsh sounds go on to produce ethereal highs, an ever-present echo develops over the higher frequencies, and brings to mind a church doused in audible flame. Sassy.

Kaelteeinbruch is back yet again with more dissonant, metallic sounds laced with endless distortion and pornographic samples. It sounds like something is being hit, maybe metal sheeting or something large and cylindrical. Whatever it is, it's drenched to fuck in distortion and played back at maximum volume, with all the whining and moaning you could ever want or need.