Gore & Roll

Hm… this title… sounds like a nod to Carcass and the goofier side of the goregrind movement (not firmly mapped out yet). On the other hand, one shouldn’t be surprised if the lads here have cooked something completely uncharacteristic… although, if you think of it, what can be deemed characteristic in their case, one of the most eclectic, unpredictable outfits on the circuit...

nothing; especially after the previous “Recolecciones…” from seven years back took care of every nook and corner from the metal (and not only) kaleidoscope, leaving no stone unturned with its encompassing encyclopaedic nature. And that’s why the delivery on this gory opus is way more coherent and compact, "Era de Bacterion" bouncing around with jarring quirky spasms, but apart from the bass-heavy progressive dramatic extravaganza "Turu el Terrible", its invitation for an outlandish twisted waltz hasn’t been accepted by the rest. Still, the band’s renown for offbeatness comes justified elsewhere, the hectic technical thrash headbanger "Poser Apocalipsis" scratching the heads non-linearly, also adding a cool melodic nuance to the proceedings, the latter suddenly acquiring a more aggressive veneer thanks to the speed/thrashing urgency of "Legion Subterranea" and the bashing proto-death violator "Terror Carnaza".

Yes, the guys feel rowdier and unruly for a change, but there’s also quite a bit of wading through clumsy groovy sections, some ponderously doomy ones as well, which kind of diminish the appeal of the superior material. There’s variety here, needless to add, and although it seems like the latter stance has been put in shackles when compared to the band’s previous few excursions, it does slip away more than just now and then, the band failing to suppress their vivid artistic flair the whole time, coming up with another diverse slab, however tamed it may seem to the guys’ standards.

There’s no gore, and there’s no roll… unless reflected in the lyrics, of course, but my knowledge of Spanish needs to experience a hefty upgrade to be able to tell if this is a fact. Well, it’s Dorso, after all… what do you want? Never playing by any rules, continuously exploring new untrodden trajectories, always defying the established musical gravity… disguising their eccentricity beneath deceiving, misleading titles.