Intolerance Deathsquads

You have these bands of which one can make the statement that they always do the same thing, and in that particular category we meet US black/death metal peddlers Ampütator. These guys have shoved out a variety of releases that had no surprises on offer for anyone who had heard the band before, and frankly, that's the way I like this kind of stuff to be.

This is some abrasive and especially raw stuff. Ampütator strikes out with a mixture of growling vocalisations, chainsaw guitar rage and pounding percussive fury, combining these elements into short and especially volatile bursts of barely controlled aggression, landing the band somewhere between deranged black metal, grindcore and white noise. Ampütator does not do subtle or melodic anywhere on this album, but simply aims for the throat and groin, clawing at your tender parts with claws of the blackest steel. This is music created to hurt, simply having no place for fine feelings anywhere. Cloaked in a grainy and frankly unhinged soundmix, Ampütator rages through a set of tracks primarily reliant on high velocity and boisterous execution, brought with all the sensitivity of a jackhammer getting it on with a beltsander. I guess it's the kind of stuff you either love or hate with no way in between, so just drop me in that first category, because this kicks ass in all its unhinged and abrasive glory.

It will most probably not surprise you that the production (if any) follows suit in fitting fashion. The scraping guitars are well up front in the mix, with the drums behind that, mostly reduced to a ravaged snare, while a filth-caked, raw-throated roar soars all over it. There is nothing remotely pretty or balanced to it (kinda like the music itself), but what it does do, is establishing an atmosphere of barely contained insanity and seething belligerence. In other words, it fits this kind of music like a glove.

This is a relentless barrage of black/death metal ruckus that will only appeal to fans of bands like Blasphemy, Deiphago and Nyogthaeblisz, although I can imagine that those into the gruffer side of grindcore should also be able to get along with this. For the people with finer, more delicate tastes in metal music, this is probably nightmare fuel of the highest order. Crossover appeal is a concept that is not applicable to Ampütator, and let's face it, that's exactly why I love them.