Morbid Ways to Die

Supreme Carnage's "Morbid Ways to Die" CD came directly from Raw Skull Rekordz and I'm quite surprised to see that it's already third full length album of this German band. Sadly, I never had a chance to hear or see any of their previous releases, but I definitely would like to get them one day. This newest effort sounds good and left an appetite for more. I never have enough of great death metal, you know?!

And if you like old school, vicious, yet strongly melodic death metal, then check Supreme Carnage also! This is one of those bands, which put more attention to the atmosphere of their music rather than focus on the sheer brutality. So, their sound is very heavy, yes, but it's also quite groovy, monumental and epic. And melodic, definitely! In many aspects it all sounds like a combination of Swedish death metal (similar to Just Before Dawn for instance) with Bolt Thrower, and it's a good mixture. There's plenty of great and insanely memorable riffage, basically every song is catchy as fuck, but heavy and perfectly suitable if you would like to bang your skull a little. Sure, I sometimes would wish to hear a bit more of fast, savage death metal - which Supreme Carnage delivers very little, because majority of "Morbid Ways to Die" is slow or mid paced. "1008 Pints of Death" is probably the only song, where you could find some blasting fragments. Luckily, that slower music doesn't disturb or bore me at all. Because as I mentioned, Supreme Carnage came up with many killer riffs, the songwriting is excellent, I also like the production of this album a lot - which is very powerful and ass kicking. And Jorge’s vocals are absolutely awesome. This is why I spent these 40 minutes of "Morbid Ways to Die" with honest pleasure. And played it quite a lot recently.

Standout tracks: "The Fire Prevails", "Morbid Ways to Die", "The War of Ages to Come", "1008 Pints of Death"
Verdict: 75/100

When it comes to a revival in old school death metal (OSDM), I’m typically interested.  In fact, most bands that are part of this whole revival thing are pretty damn good. I think it’s funny because a Death knock off band (Gruesome) is the biggest one of them all.  I wonder if it’s because Death is such a loved band.  Hmmm...  That’s a real brain wracker.  Anyways, of these “new OSDM” acts is Supreme Carnage, and they’re taking death metal by the horns on their third full-length album.

My first impression is that the vocalist is very guttural, yet dry at the same time, giving the band a distinct sound.  I like this sound because not only is different, but it also packs a strong punch.  It’s more of a roar than a growl, so it sounds more in-your-face and aggressive, fitting the theme of the album quite well.

The vocalist isn’t the only one doing things right.  The guitarist is writing some killer hooks.  They aren’t just playing along, giving basic melodies and riffs to the music like a lot of bands do.  Instead, they’re going to riff city, giving the music epic atmosphere and memorability.  Think if Cannibal Corpse and Sinister did a collaboration album.  That’s what the guitar on this album sounds like.  It's epic, and it sticks in your brain.

As for bass and drums, both seem to be doing their part, but drums usually aren’t worth talking about unless they’re doing something wrong, so good job, drummer.  The bass doesn’t seem to deviate from the guitar that much.  A lot of OSDM bands would have small bass parts here and there as transitions or interludes, so that would be cool if this band could replicate that, if not improve upon it.  They’ve been good about replicating everything so far, so that shouldn’t be hard for them (one could assume).

Other than their kickass logo, I’m pretty sure I’ve covered everything. The production isn’t bad. In fact, it’s just right.  There, now I’ve covered everything.  Supreme Carnage is a great act.  Their material is solid and well-rounded with great riffs and melodies.  I look forward to another release.

Overall Rating: 94%

Originally written for themetalvoid.wordpress.com