The Palpable Leprosy of Pollution

I believe my favorite memes among the Internet are the ones that depict a child unlocking a chest revealing a image of him holding a vinyl copy of this album with the phrase "Do you remember your first time?" adorned atop the picture, or the meme that shows a child presenting a copy of this album to his grandfather with his elder's immediate response being "Sit down you little faggot. I'm going to tell you a great story." It's because well.. those memes perfectly illustrate my memories with this record. This was hyped up, brought out and delivered perfectly at the best time it possibly could. Sure it falls a little short these days and it doesn't have the impact it did if you heard this back in 2012, but at the same time I'm convinced my entire motivation to even type this review is coming solely looking through my rose-tinted glasses at this thing.

When Infant Annihilator came out, the phrase "internet band" was still a fresh relatively unknown/unheard of thing. Yeah, I mean sure Slice the Cake were slicing things up at least 2 years prior to IA's arrival, and Malodorous were were doing it even earlier. But there was still a charm to do, see and hear these two British kids who wanted nothing more than to make sweet, sweet breakdowns while dry humping each other in a forest with a deranged sociopathic American vocalist bellowing away his lyrical attacks on infantcide and baby rape across this 50-minute runtime. I was a teenager when this came out. Prior to this I worshiped Whitechapel, and fiendishly obsessed over Suicide Silence and Carnifex and this was the very peak point when I was beginning to start my trek into brutal death metal with bands like Disgorge, Guttural Secrete and Putrid Pile coming on my radar. A aesthetic blend of everything I loved at the time all coming together at once was my literal dream come true. This album was about to become my life. 12/12/12 (the album's release date) was adorned on my calendar as I fiendishly awaited this album's release and I can't fucking make the memories go away of what I did the moment I opened Facebook and saw that this was finally released...
Anyways enough talk of my precious nostalgia, let's talk about the music.

There's two ways I could do this review honestly. The first way could be how I heard it/listened to it/experienced it in 2012, or my other way could be how it feels to listen to this right now. As I write this it is now currently September 2019. Seven years really has made a difference and impact on this album and I'm not saying this album has aged poorly, I'm simply stating that my passion for The Palable Leprosy of Polution has more or less been err... tainted being that I'm more of a grown up now than I was then. Opening licks such as the A Serbian Film-referencing "New Born Porn" instrumental, "Devotion to the Child Rape Syndicate" or the 2/4/6-track trilogy simply just don't carry that same impact or punch as they did reading the grotesque shocking lyrics as this current age surrounding it does. Gore, misogyny, murder and rape in brutal music has been overdone and a lot has changed these 7 years. Perhaps it's desensitization, either way with that portion of the experience missing it does definitely hold a factor here.

Breakdowns, breakdowns, breakdowns!! This album has LOADS of them; almost appearing in triples on every single song. Whenever you go into one riff, it’s not long before another chuggy section follows. It’s in those parts where the 2019 wear starts to show due to the fact that it feels overdone and excessive. Breakdowns feel tasteful and fun and exciting when used sparsely. If you take MDMA every day eventually MDMA isn’t going to be special to you anymore, it’s going to be your normal. The same thing goes for these breakdowns. Halfway through the record you’re not even moved by them anymore: it’s just a part of the song. It feels boring by the time the elapsed 35-minute mark swings in (maybe even earlier for others).

Had this album been written and had its ideas spawned sparsely between weeks/months instead of busting the entire thing out in a single week (which members Kitcher and Pickard reportedly did), it probably would have had its songs made more memorable and had its parts shine more vividly. Compare these songs to the band’s latest two outings and The Palpable Leprosy of Pollution feels almost like a prototype to IA’s advancements. Thankfully tracks such as “II. Anal Prolapse Suffocation” or the phenomenally composed “Cuntcrusher” show that some parts of the album were crafted more masterfully than others. For every seven breakdowns here, there's about one guitar solo. Moments like those which show diversity are which keep this album from being awful. In a album that, in my judgement, was written, composed and put out far too quickly without that necessary chemistry or experimentation that most bands go through in their early writing stages, there are still so many good things that make TPLOP a good record with a lot of fun moments to behold.

Vocals are a big one I haven’t even touched on yet. I hereby blame and accuse this album for putting that absurd vocal trend on the map. Bands like Signs of the Swarm which quite literally abuse ridiculous-sounding vocals purely for attention/marketing purposes - which is all so common in 2019 deathcore - can all be coherently rooted to Dan Watson's performance in Infant Annihilator. Maybe nowadays the vocals on this album might not be anything to shit a brick over, but in 2012 hearing a guy that crossed the paths of what sounded like Phil Bozeman, Vincent Bennett, Elliot Desgagnés and Alex Koehler - but on steroids - was a sight to behold at the forefront for such a shockingly brutal package. If IA's breakdowns or technical musicianship didn't grab you by the throat, Dan Watson was the last line of defense to assure that this band's music wasn't gonna go unnoticed. It achieved that so, so well... A little too well considering it made this vocal style a entire fad. Couple that with lyrics that paint a very gross and extreme image made this album one of the memorable musical releases of 2012.

Guest features? Eh, sans Lucas Mann's guitar solos on Flayed and Consumed, they're bland and pointless. All the vocal features are unnecessary; they do nothing for the songs in particular and are forgettable at best. I will only give kudos to Mann's feature, his solos really do add a distinct depth and specialty to the track. I would have liked to see more inclusions such as his where a outside artist's innovative talent truly contributes to the song they're on, but unfortunately "Flayed and Consumed" is the only track on here that has such a impression.

The last final thing I can really give this album credit for is production standards, it's huge, it's in your face and when you take it into account that all 3 members were collectively 20 - 23 years old at the time of recording/production it really takes fascination into account as well. Guitars sound like buzzsaws ripping through human flesh, the bass guitar is audible more than half of the time and the drum samples consist of constant, piercing snare hits, which, while sounding laughably fake, do carry a ton of power. Sure, it’s 127 on the MIDI volume scale all the time, but it does the job. I personally will even go as far to say that this album is produced/mixed even huger than some albums I listen to even now. It's pretty much the essential thing that made this album age like fine wine.

Bottom line: Compared to Infant's later records this one takes less a prominence on technicality. While you will find a fair amount of technical moments, the primary focus seems to be on the breakdowns and crushing atmosphere. Basically the desire to be as overwhelmingly heavy as possible is prioritized at the forefront for this album and that's the way it is because that's just how IA was birthed; they had a goal to do and delivered.
From a nostalgic standpoint this album means a lot to me. Unfortunately 2012 was 7 years ago; I've moved on and lived a lot of life since then. However, I still occasionally can find myself returning to this record for mere dumb fun and embracing one's inner-idiot. Much like what albums such as Annotations of an Autopsy's Before the Throne of Infection proved years before, is that gorecore can be enjoyed better if you reserved your seat in advance and know what you're in for before getting into it.

"...His kingdom shall rot forever
I have no sympathy for God"