Severed Survival

It might have been sixteen years since Autopsy hit the death metal scene with their debut "Severed Survival", but the afformentioned album is a staple of the genre and has influenced many bands, and will undoubtly influence many more. When this album was released the genre was young, and needed some strong albums to define it and set a high standard for the inevitable barrage of imitators inclusive with the birth of any genre. This album does just that.

From the very beginning the formula to follow is apparent. Mushy production slightly hindering the album, but not taking away the quality of the guitar riffs or Reifert's drumming. The vocals courtesy of Reifert aswell are intresting; he has more than a hint of insanity in his voice, but he is still comprehendable to a certain degree. His voice and delivery compliments the music and chosen lyrical themes well.

One of the most important part of any death metal release is a constant assault of great riff followed by great riff - and this album is no exception. The riffs can range from the agressive ones played to the faster drumming of Reifert, or the heavy chord hits at a slow, dragging tempo. The guitar sound is a little to warm and undefinable for my liking, occasionally is is even obliterated by the bass. The solo work is good; succint solos that hit the music well without seeming indulgent and pointless. The bass guitar is pretty high in the mix here, which is a good thing as there are some nice lines. The prominence of the bass in the mix is quite an important factor in the intresting overall sound produced on this album. The drumwork is great, but it's Chris Reifert, what else did you expect? He knows how to use his double bass pedal, but he also knows that a little variation in the drums can make a world of difference, and he uses his drums well to compliment the accents of the guitar/bass combination.

The only drawback of this album is the lack of diversity, the songs are great, but alot of them are forgettable. There's still plenty of great riffs to keep you going here, and the music and vocals are both of high quality. I'd recommend this album to fans of old school death, and I'd recommend listening to 'Pagan Saviour', 'Critical Madness' or 'Embalmed' if you need more persuasion.