SCREAM BLOODY GORE

I think most of the Prog Archives users are not into death metal. Even for me, death metal was the hardest metal genre to swallow. Well, death metal must be seen as a joke, a way to challenge the normal music listener and his common senses, making technical or hard listening music heavier than everything else. Bands like Death were jokers and made offensive lyrics before, but after earn due respect, the songwriting went progressive and technical than before, focusing the lyrics on philosophy and psychology. Even sounding poor at times, like the terrible death metal debut Scream Bloody Gore, the music was very intelligent and innovative at times. That's why you should listen carefully this album, to fully understand the meaning and goals of the band with this one. Of course, some death metal bands and most of the current death metal scene are taking serious the ridiculous "brutal" stuff and dark jokes. Sorry but I despise the "self-called evil in real life" bands.

This is one of the most influential albums into heavy heavy music. Death's debut was not a progressive album yet. But the power it holds is very important to the progressive bands after. Even for the death metal haters, this is a must listen and essential to the worldwide music: this is culture. The whole stuff was wrote by Chuck Schuldiner, the leader of the band, recording bass, guitars and vocals at Scream Bloody Gore. The first incarnation of the band, called Mantas, were not well accepted by the bands and local metal scenes around. Chuck's vocals were just too harsh for the current 80's metal, and general music. "The local situation was f* nearly impossible," Schuldiner later recalled. "A lot of people looked down upon us. We got a lot of sh* from the local band scene; all the bands from around (Orlando) thought we were pure sh*. We were noisy back then, but we were putting out brutal death metal, and it was too much for people to comprehend." The total lack of support from the neighbourhood drove them to break-up the band in late 1984. But Chuck didn't gave up, and started Death at Tampa - Florida.

The first "true" death metal album, Scream Bloody Gore, was finally released at 1987, after being recorded two times for the perfect capture of the moody and poor musical horror feeling, present before (not as music) in the b-movies and Romero's zombie works. Some of the songs were inspired by trash movies, like Regurgitated Guts, which was inspired by Gates of Hell a.k.a City of The Living Dead, Beyond the Unholy Grave by the movie The Beyond, and Zombie Ritual by Zombie, all films directed by the italian director Lucio Fulci.

Playing the album, you will first listen to a slow heavy riffage, nothing complicated, but but reaches the desired point: b-movie horror soundscape. Many people doesn't have fun watching ridiculous horror effects of the oldschool films, but I do, and if you did too, you will laugh and felt comfortable listening to Infernal Death b-music riffage. Chuck starts: DIIIIIEE. So after a few times the oldschool blast beating style, not so goddamn fast, like most of the later florida death metal acts, but just the way it should be in the pure death metal, many times evoked by early swedish death metal bands. The grinding guitars are funny enough.

So, the second track, Zombie Ritual, will probably catch you by the intro: it was my first death metal track, very nostalgic, as well as the best known Death song from the early period. The awesome exotic riff intro is followed by blast beats after few times, the same progressive formula of the previous track. But now the tempo changes to the pre-chorus, and changes again to the chorus. It's progressive, indeed, but not the kind of prog that Yes closed-minded fans will easily agree. After this, the blast beating drums strikes again. Oh, the lyrics are brutal, but you don't need to care, the worst part of the lyrics, at the very beggining, I would never understand without the booklet or internet.

Denial of Life starts out fast, and slow down after good riffs, to the chorus, and then back into different aggresive riffs. Constant rhythmic changes. It's a good pure death metal track. Sacrificial, the fourth track, is lirycally speaking, the murder track, that's horrible! The original title of the track was denied. Musically speaking, is a highlight. It's the progressive version of Infernal Death, but the main riffs are doom. Mutilation, the next step. Well, this is a death metal hymn. Not progressive. But this is de oldschool death metal formula. A definition of the "oldschool death metal" term. Angry bass, fast drums, grinding riffs and non- hightechnical guttural. Offensive lyrics, by the way ("I celebrate a faggot's death, human disgrace, Hanging your mangled corpse for display")

Regurgitated Guts beginning is very pleasent, weird guitar and time signature, falling into a formulatic horror lyrics and fast metal, with some technical habilities. Constant rhythmic changes again at Baptized In Blood. Well, if you liked the album until here, you will probably like this track too. I will highlight the guitar solo at Torn To Pieces, very funny and chromatic. My favorite song from the album is Evil Dead: the melodic doom intro is great! And the warcry chorus makes me shout together with Chuck. The Scream Bloody Gore self-titled track is the weak point, IMO. The bonus tracks are pretty cool.

More than relevant. Essential album to the music world.