Mix Tape 003

Eleven tracks of old-school death metal. Selections include '90s demos and underground albums.

Listen Now

Playlist

1. Fulmination, "New Gods"

SWEDEN - Second track of their 1992 demo, Through Fire. Recorded at Dan Swano's Gorysound studio in the early winter.

2. Afterlife, "Dead Lights Glare"

USA / Indiana - Speedy closer to their sole full-length Surreality (1992). Technical for its time. Surreality was released on underground Midwest label Grind Core Records. 

3. Sacretomia, "Putrid Remains"

SWEDEN - Chunky and heavy with a nice doom section at the end. Taken from the debut Altar of Sin demo (1992).

4. Cerecloth, "Beautiful Lying Faces"

UK - Taken from their 1993 single, Encrusted In An Oaken Legend. Released by GWB Records. Simplistic and bludgeoning with decent production. Flute!

5. Necropsy, "Morbid Trauma"

GERMANY - Of the 8 million metal bands called Necropsy, it's this one. Neck-snapping death with thrash underpinnings. This is taken from their 1990 demo, Pay With Your Life. The ferocity shines through in spite of the rough production. A year later they released an EP on Century Media.

6. Makrothumia, "An Interior Autonom Structurality (To Protect... To Deceive... Protecting?)"

ROMANIA - The song titles may reek of Demilich, but the cloudy death/doom on The Rit of Individuation shares little with the Finns besides a penchant for experimentation. The album was released on cassette in 1997 by Bestial Records. The band may have been light on material but members went to other things (including Negura Bunget) ultimately reforming as Transceatla in 2014.

7. Alchemist, "Lunation"

AUSTRALIA - Speaking of experimental, here's a blast of bizarre from this lot's Promo '94. They cleaned up a lot from their early works to release a spate of challenging full-lengths in the '00s, but never lost the willingness to confound.

8. Lobotomy, “Inner Wrath”

SWEDEN - More Swedes making bloody chunks. Taken from their 1990 demo, When Death Draws Near. Good stuff.

9. Cemetary, “The Funeral (Eternal Rest)”

SWEDEN - Yet more Swedes. Taken from their 1991 Incarnation of Morbidity demo, released a year before their incredible An Evil Shade of Grey debut on Black Mark. The mono mix is unusual but it kind of work, and you can barely hear the gothic melodicism that would take over the band's sound in 3 years. Good stuff.

10. Sanitarium, “In The Dawn of Time”

SLOVAKIA - I knew of this band from Internal Womb Cannibalism (1991), a brutal death metal pig squealing mess of blood and sewage that bears little in common with this rather traditional tune. I must say, I think I like this better. Taken from their Autumn Shadows EP (1996), released by Erebos Productions. Available on Bandcamp as a combo with the subsequent Necrologue demo.

11. Severe Torture, “Lambs of A God”

NETHERLANDS - Let's go out with splattery thud. Taken from their Baptized... demo, released on CD by the band in 1994. One of Europe's answers to Cannibal Corpse, and a good one at that.