EP 2011

This EP is not my first run-in with Welding Torture. A few months back I happened to come across this video for the track ‘Three Victims For The Price Of One,’ which appears as the first song on this EP. Besides the crab walking, I thought that Welding Torture had a very catchy and groovy brand of brutal death metal on their hands, and now with this EP in my possession, I am able to see if the rest of the music can stand up to my test.

As I mentioned above, Welding Torture play a very catchy and groovy brand of brutal death metal, combined with their semi-technical prowess and engaged song-writing abilities, the four tracks that are on this EP are ridiculously chock full of talent. Musically, I can see a lot of similarity with Severed Savior, Gorgasm, and Viral Load, particularly in the drumming. Speaking of Viral Load, I sometimes get the impression that Vladey is trying his best to impersonate Shawn Whitaker at times, as he does a low-bellowing growl and transitions into his gutturals pretty well. Roman’s guitar tone and riffs are pretty standard fare for brutal death metal most of the time, but the way that he integrates many different techniques is what really catches my ear. Victor’s bass-chops are right up front and center in the music, with the tone of his bass being really full and thick, giving the music a much-needed crunch. Max’s drum work seems to be mainly focused on double bass and blastbeats, but he has a very diverse repertoire and is not afraid to show more intricate works, especially in ‘My Burden, Recycling Cancer Tumours, Like You’ and ‘Shout How Many Will Get.’ I was really blown away by what Welding Torture has recorded on this EP. It is by no means anything original, but the way they play everything is unique to them. A solid mixture of standard brutal death metal and slam.

Originally written for Metal Blast: http://www.metalblast.net/2012/03/blast-radius-march-2012-part-i/

Now I am not a fan of 'grind' music. Only some bands like Skinless and Mincing Fury catch my eye. This is because they play more melodic 'grind' than most of their counterparts. In saying that I was very surprised when I heard this EP by Welding Torture.

The problem with most grind bands is wall of noise, vomited vocals that make you sick kind of thing. I don't like that. This album is different (i.e. it won't make you sick). I love the guitar work in each song. Not downtuned to the point of just growled/vomit sound and not going at a 1000 miles an hour. Don't get me wrong this album is fast. The band has an actual drummer as well instead of a machine and he can play just as well (no wait...even better) than any machine.

Something that really shines is the vocal work. still it is close to grindcore vocals, but it just sounds different. The vocalist sings much better in my eyes than most grindcore bands. He will use a wide range of effects to get his voice across. Saying that I think the vocals are what are really special in this album, along with the guitar work.

All songs stand out on their own. They each have tasty riffs, highspeed percussion (not from a machine) and even an audible bass in some sections. "Three Victims for the Price of One" is probably the best track on the album. At the end of "Genetically Modified Murders" there is even a small orchestral piece

There seem to be no downfalls in this album. The only problem doesn't really make a big difference and it is in the first half of the album. I'm talking about the sound effects. They don't really mean anything.

The album on a whole is really good and the band deserves the recognition they are getting. Even non grind fans like me will love this album.