Cannibal Corpse : " Violence Unimagined"

Cannibal Corpse pretty much defines straight up death metal. When they throw themselves into the speed lusty barrage that opens the album it is no surprise. I mean what else did you expect. They are like the AC/DC of death metal. Lyrically they are not trying to out sick "Tomb of the Mutilated" and to be honest I am not sure if they can touch the Chris Barnes year in that regard. George is however a better growler. Barnes sounded pathetic on the the last Six Feet Under album , and George has not changed and that is a good thing as his growl remains strong. The riff to "Inhumane Harvest" is the first one that really grabs my ear. The first two songs are clearly well done for what they do , this one stands out on it's own  legs.

The lyrics to "Condemnation Contagian" might be more timely it just does not feel as dark of a song. It is also at this point in the album where I can begin to feel the songs taking on a uniform feel.  These guys teeter a fine line with the rule cool riffs alone do not a good song make. You see things fall apart with this on "Ritual Annihilation" has it becomes a murky mess of guitar going to fast for it's own good. This is the first song that feels like filler to me. Two minutes in they do pulls it together with a cool riff, but the rest of the song should not be a book end for it. When I play this back to back against "the Bleeding", it is clear this album is heavier due to the bigger guitar sound, which has less to do with the band itself and more about production. Granted the longer these guys have been playing the more polished they have become. 'Follow the Blood" shows they can still write a song when they set their mind to it. The guitar playing has almost caught up to Morbid Angel as far as chops go. 

 

"Bound and Burned" benefits from great guitar playing , but consumed by it's own aggression to the point of not allowing the song to breathe on it's own. With "Slowly Sawn" they prove that aggression does not have to hinder song writing. It is one of the album's better songs. "Overorture" is another a typical blast of death metal . Then the last song finds them benefitting from varied tempos rather than a dense muddy explosion. I will give this album an 8. There are some strong songs. It neveer sucks it does find Cannibal Corpse sometimes punching the clock out of obligation and not at their most inspired, 

7.3