Satan’s Revenge of Mankind (always from Germany) instead didn’t impress me much with their previous full-length album, so dangerously close to the plainness of the routine goregrind of Space Shiters. These tracks, however are somewhat cooler. The snare drum has now a sound so damn clanky that it makes Pungent Stench sound like Sepultura, but I still like it. The sludgy, slow parts are deliciously German in style (CBT, Bitch Infection etc.), and actually there are real fast blasts ripping the songs away from a perennial mid tempo. The vocals are grace and damnation of ths side however, sometimes decently frog-like, but at times they really sound a bit struggling -gone are however, the real terrible barks a la Bestial Devastation – thanks Satan! There may be no really memorable moments in this SROM side, but these tracks are nonetheless cool German mid paced fun – optimal for slamming rhytmically the arms in the air like an idiot at a beer fest. Good shit to hear when drunk, even if even I have to admit this stuff is a bit inflated these days. 6.50 in my book.
In my opinion Hymen Holocaust (Holland) hits the right spot a bit harder than the two disc mates. Their sound is so sick and sewage, the distortion fermenting with rot and grime, I cannot but feel some sympathy for this son of a bitch. The riffs are actually a bit boring taken singularly, but the song flow is reinforced by the messy sound and a super sick array of gargling vocals. This is a band that plays Goregrind the way I see it, with a disgusting vocal style that really sounds as if the singer is about to puke anytime. I have no idea how artificial they are, but the final effect is quite good. To tell the truth, I am not a huge fan of Cliteater, and to me this Hymen Holocaust project sounds a bit better than the main band. Contrarily to the previous bands also, there is no sign of bulldozing German chugs, but have instead a more omogeneous Brutal Death/Grind sound with some slow chunks of slam galore scattered in. Seven fifty, sir.
The layout of this Cd is cheap beyond belief, main weak point of this release. As normal for recent goregrind releases, it just looks cheap. The choice of colors is appalling, and even if for once all the images seem to be the right resolution, the way the elements are placed are almost as bad as old Necroharmonic Cds. I guess it’s time for goregrind to start curing a bit more its looks.