Rest in Power - Mke Browning

 

Tampa Metal's legned drumm/vocalist Mike Browning, who passed at the age of 62  on July 13th.From liver failure, which would not be a huge surprise to those who knew him and his tenouw lifestyle,. The deaths caused by the rock ' n ' roll lifestyle are sometimes slower coming than others.  He played in the earliest incarnation of Morbid Angel that went by the names Ice and Heretic before settling on the name they are famous for. He played on "Abominations of Desolation," which would not see the light of day until 91. He would be replaced by Terrorizer drummer Pete Sandoval as the classic lineup of the band took form. He played briefly in a band called Incubus, not the stoner Faith No More wannabes, then formed Nocturnus, which included in its earliest line-ups the bass player for Agent Steel and Vincent Crowley of  Acheron. 

What set these guys apart from the pack when it came to the Tampa death metal scene of the 90s was that they had sci-fi themes, and keyboards were very dominant to aid in this atmosphere. When I bought their masterpiece "The Key" as a teenager, I was surprised that the drummer was also the vocalist. They felt like a death metal version of Coroner to me due to their technical prowess. To this day, that album still sounds great. I recently got the full dynamic range mix, and it holds up against anything today. It is an album that shows they were at one time able to stand toe to toe with Morbid Angel, who are more consistent in their releases as until recently I had not paid much attention to wehre they band was after "The Key," which is their best formula

I know they have had other vocalists to allow Browning to focus on drums, but his voice is a signature of the band. Their later work had a high bar to live up to when it came to being weighed against "The Key," but you gotta give him props for sticking to what he loved. He was one of the most important figures in the Tampa death metal scene, and here is to hoping Tom Morris has some songs from the Key session buried until Mike's page in the Necronomicon is turned, and it shall come down in a demon comet to be made an MP3. If you are a death metal fan, go listen to "The Key".

 

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Death is June - Deicide's "To Hell With God"

This is the last Deicide album I am going to be reviewing, as after this one, I have reviewed their entire discography of studio albums. This album found the band stepping into Auidohammer Studios to have Mark Lewis produce the album. When this album came out in 2011, Lewis had already produced Death Angel, White Chapel, The Black Dahlia Murder, Trivium, and DevilDriver, so he has dialed in the sound of modern metal. Right from the first song, it is obvious how it improved the sound. By improved and polished. That could be a drawback if you want this to sound like their earlier work and less like the average death metal band in 2011. 

Benton and his sonic sadists brough their a-game as they are ripping into these songs with no stopping their momentum. It's hyper-fast but still works. Not to say it might not get old midway through the album. Witness of Death"h makes you think it's going to side-step the god hate, but no, they dialed it up.  It is almost too fast for their own good, but it stays together somehow. "Conviction' has the lead single from this album. Lewis nails Gelns bass tone, which stands out in the mix. This song is way more purposeful than the first three songs, so it's no mistake why this was the single. They keep the catchy riffs going with "Empowered By Blasphemy." The verses are hookier than what is supposed to be the chorus. 

"Angels of  Hell starts off in a manner that is more thrashy than what they have done up to this point on this album, but I like the slight gallop in the verse. It is now a trademark that you can bet they are going to speed up at some point. What they have to do is make sure they have bookended it with enough dynamics. 'Hang In Agony Until You're Dead' is more like what was typical of death metal at the time. They have a blast-fest on " Servant of the Enemy." The taunt machine like precison in the chug of "Into Darkness You Go" is more effective. The last song works for what they do, and sounds fine, so no real complaints, but not wowed either. Overall, this album feels like it anchors their relevancy, so I will give it a 9.5. 

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Death is June-Deicide's "Till Death Do Us Part"

 This album finds the drummer's move into the producer chair for this albun, paying off. It sounds better than the bulk of their albums.  It also opens into a darker, more melodic manner. They were taking notes on which direction Slayer headed. Weird for them to have an instrumental, but there it went. Glen's approach to the higher demons' voices is more tortured on the title track. "Hate of All Hatreds' is the blast fest you might expect from a song titled that. It feels much more like Cannibal Corpse than they did on the last album. It races by in the blur; they continue to chase on "In the Eyes of God," though the verse finds them digging in harder and more purposefully. That works better for me as it sounds less rushed. 

"Worthless Misery" is a great description of the song, as it's the worst offender yet when it comes to rushing a song. To his credit as a drummer, Steve dialed in the guitar tones, as you are not going to find many meaner. There is a more predictable chug to 'Severed Ties," but it works better than many of the songs so far. The more thrashing "Not as Long as We Both Shall Live" is not as speed-infested as some songs, but maintains a tension aided by the flow of double bass.

 They return to the more rapid-fire approach on "Angel of Agony"; it's largely forgettable. They start off doing ok on "Horror in the Halls of Stone" then get lost when things speed up. When it comes to stacking up against their other work, it's not the worst, but it's also not the best, though better than other bands who do this sort of thing. I will give it an 8.

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Death is June -Deicide's "Serpents of the Light"

This album is where I began to lose interest in the band, as I thought they had grown too similar to the death metal norm. Going back to listen to this, I can hear where I got that impression, but the songwriting continued to improve, rather than just steamrolling you. Benton's vocals are more articulated, though the primary focus is on the lower growl. However, this does not mean they are not prone to bouts of blast beats before kinding thrashy grooves. There are bursts of the higher demonic  vocals jut not a flowing layer of them over top the lower growl;

"Blame it On God" is more of a hyper-aggressive speed fest, though his vocals are more deliberately placed, which helps the song's overall framework. By 1997, Scott Burns had obviously dialed in the death metal sound that is reflected in the overall sonic presentation of the album. The formula seems to kick into the song as fast as you can, then create more space on the verse, though "This is Hell We're In" . The vocals are almost sung on the chorus, perhaps taking notes from what Morbid Angel had found greater success with at this point in time. 

"I Am No One" is driven by a riff that kicks absolute ass. This dominates the previous songs so far. 'Slave to the Cross" is more like filler as it sounds like post-Vincent Morbid Angel. "Creatures of Habit" digs in harder, but is more straightforward. "Believe the Lie" feels more like who they are. "The Truth Above" starts off with a blast before it reins in the verse that reminds me of the title track from the first album. "Father Baker"  is more of a blunt for trauma, that buzzes with a thrash energy . I will give this album an 8.5, it would e interesting to see how it stacks up against other death metal from this time periods, it's a good album just not their best .

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Death is June - Deicide's "Once Upon the Cross"

 

The band's third album finds them really dialing everything into its final form, and is some of the most classic death metal production to be commited to an album. It compliments there riffing, which opens the album with something equally brutal and catchy. However, when this album came out, the more mainstream vocal approach from Benton had me thinking they were becoming too much like other death metal bands, so it is good for me to listen back to get a better perspective, as even "Christ Denied," which I would not have called my favorite song when I first bought this album, is some tight-ass riffing. The vocals are more about where he places his voice than the layers of demon vocals. 

"When Satan Rules This World" is more streamlined, but it balances the brutality out. It is not as blistering fast, though there are passages where the double bass does pick up the pace. Lyrically, things are consistent with who they are without being over the top. Even when they speed up going into "Kill the Christian." The first song that feels like filler is "Trick or Betrayed," as it races to hell on a flurry of rabid drumming. Without a doubt, the best song on the album is "They are the Children of the Underworld," which runs off some amped up thrashing chugs. It certainly has the strongest chorus. 

They resort to some blasting for " Behind the Light Thou Shall Rise," which sounds the most like what they did on the "Legion" with the locked-in bass creating a machine-like rumble to streamroll. The vocal preformance is a little more obligatory and Cookie Monster. I forgot about "To Be Dead" as I must have not made it past "They Are the Children of the Underworld" most of the time. Like the previous song, it resorts to the approach used on "Legion". They close the album with "Confessional Rape" showing they were groundbreakers in the # MeToo movement. It coasts on the wave of the double bass, with the vocals having more purpose than in some songs. I will give this a 9.5 as the songwriting has matured for what would do down as one of the heaviest and best dialed in death metal albums.

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Death is June - Deicide's "Deicide"

 

Last year, I tackled reviewing the entire discography of Cannibal Corpse; this year, I am going through Deicide's catalog. They are a band whose name does not get brough up as much as needed when talking about the early days of extreme metal and the influence they had, as this album was more bludgeoning and extreme than where Morbid Angel was at, so let's see how these albums have held up over the test of time. The opening track "Lunatic of God's Creatioin" benefits from the element of surprise and the gritty rumble of the bass tone that is locked in with the drums to create a heavier feel than what was out at the time. At under three minutes, it's a powerful jab to your eardrums. The song is actually about Charles Manson, even though they were supposed to be a Satanic death metal band; they branch out into various serial killers and mass murderers, along with horror movies, not making them as far removed from the pack as perceived back in the day.

"Sacrificial Suicide" is more thrashing than the opening track, and with that comes a hookier interplay of the vocals with the riff. "Oblivious to Evil" finds the taunt razor-edged riffing slicing at you. The lyrics are not as articulated as well on this album, so the vocals just ride the guitars."Dead Bt Dawn's highlights how the double-tracked vocal approach helped to set these guys apart and create a more demonic sound that black metal bands to come would take notes from. The "Evil Dead" theme worked for what they were doing at the time. When it comes to coming up with a title like "Blaspherereion" teenage me thought it was cool, but looking back, it's kind of silly and amounts to heavy metal poppycock to any serious Satanist or occultist. The song is a rabid speed fest, with catchier vocals than most bands that fail at this sort of thing. 

"Mephistopheles" is another blazing fast song that finds them accelerating to the point that it is too fast for its own good, as it makes the song less memorable than some of the more purposeful moments on this album. 

For all the silly moments, there are songs like the eponymous title track that are absolute timeless death metal classics and make it worthwhile. Lyrics aside, it all works perfectly, with impressive vocal intensity and blinding drum work. The homage to Jim Jones, "Carnage in the Temple of the Damned" is thrashier and benefits from the purposeful vocals locking in on the chorus. The same can almost be said of "Day of Darkness' though this one is maringally more deliberate, which was enough to not make it a fast-forward classic. While the lyrics to "Crucifixation" are dumb, the song is pretty classic, with a Slayer-like chaos coming from the guitars. The album's strongest songs balance out the silliniess and speed obsessed sloppiness of some songs, making this worth rating a 10, as it broke new ground for the extreme metal should be willinging to go.  I also have to take into consideration the impact it had on me when I heard this album as a teenager.

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Intoxicated : "the Dome"

Florida thrashers Intoxicated, despite being from Orlando, were influenced by the Tampa scene and about an hour and a half south of them, which of course leaned towards the more death metal side of the genre, and that can be heard even in 2026. They have been around since the mid-90s, but this is only the band's third full-length. They still retain their knack for writing hooky riffs. The vocals are in a raspy, almost spoken style, making them more articulated, which reminds me a little of Coroner. The title track has less groove than the previous song, as the double bass keeps it more in your face. 

These guys are certainly on the heavier side of thrash. "War Club" is a little more mosh-inducing until it reaches a more death metal speed. Guitar solos fire out from the corners of the song, though not handled as gracefully as the last Coroner album. But more purpose to them than Slayer's guitar chaos. The songs are tight three-minute bursts of old school aggression. There is more ominous intent behind "Tighten Your Eyes". I like the effects they use on the vocals , which gives some kind of variance. alomng with the slower pacing. They do throw in a pretty mean riff to give it more dynamics, making it one of the album's best songs. 

"Unescaped" is more hammering. It's also a little straightforward in terms of dynamics and sonic colors. The same could be said for "It's Dead," which glides on a tauntly picked riff. You can hear a touch of death in the verses. Some riffs have a hookier punch than others. "Shifted Cross" finds the guitar twisting and turning over the double bass's flow, continuing to pour on the death metal influence. "Rake the Grate" has a more Slayer-esque riff, with its pummelling groove. The last song has more groove but feels like it is riding the momentum of the previous song. 

The Verdict

Since I listen to hundreds of new metal albums every year and have been listening to thrash like this since the 80s, it is clear they are good at what they do, but if feels like they are just maintaining their vigor, which is impressive considering how far they go back but not experimenting with the formula enough to break new ground. I will give thi album a 9, meaning it's at the top of the game when it comes to bringing what you want from thrash, but offers nothing new to put it in the top tier of all new metal coming out, but thrash fans will find this worth their time.

 It drops March 27th on Redefining Darkness

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Monstrosity : "Screams From Beneath the Surface"

The 7th album from this long-running Floridian death metal band finds a blend of brutality and technical prowess being balanced. They are not just looking for the best riffs to solo over, but care about the songs. The riffs are ever shifting, but not so much that the hooks get lost in the shuffle. The vocal apporach is very simple, but articulated. They are not so technical that things get lost in the ever-changing time signature, but are beaten by an extensive riff arsenal. They know when to lock into a chug. The bass player is the secret weapon here as the bass lines are everflowing, but not rechnical for the sake of being so. 

"Fortunes Engraved in Blood" often reminds me of what a more refined Cannibal Corpse might sound like, in other words, Paths of Possession. Not as many melodic guitar harmonies and more emphasis placed on the syncopation of the drummer. The influence of thrash on what they do is obvious; the riffing is very tightly chugged, and they are not hitting you with a blunt barrage of blast beats to get the point across. "Vapors" is almost anthemic in places. Their songs tend to fall along the three-minute mark, though they make the most of each minute. It makes sense why these guys are on Metal Blade. Half the album was recorded at Morrisound Studios; thus, the classic Tampa Death Metal feel is captured. 

There is a powerful march to "The Thorns." Lee Harrison's drumming is top-tier, though it has to be to play this caliber of death metal. "Blood Work" is the first high-speed, hyper-aggressive blast, though even then it is giving itself room to breathe in more melodic passages, and never is there just a mindless blur of sound passing you by in the name of brutality. Things get more deliberate for "the Dark Aura".  Harrison's double bass is played very tastefully to shift the dynamics and the guitar solos are approached similarly. The last song has some cool riffs, but conforms more closely to what you expect from Tampa death metal, which is still really well done. I will give this album a 9.5, and see how it grows on me.Dropss March 13th.  

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Death is June - Looking Back in Anger at Cannibal Corpses' "Bloodthirst"

 By 1999 I had obviously grown apart from Cannibal Corpse as I do not even remember this album coming out. I think I was listening to more hardcore at this point in time. They began to become the AC/DC of death metal at this point, as there was little window dressing and they were pumping out albums that were what they did and nothing more or less. The first song falls in line what that thinking. They begin to toy with the formula once you get to "Unleashing the Bloodthirsty" which sounds more like what the band has been doing recently. Corpsegrinder has a powerful growl that is the face of the band. They are generally not shying from speed-fueled riffs, but have room to play around with. 

"The Spine  Splitter" finds a tightly coiled riff offering up another beating to your ears in a very refined manner. I am not sure if they even know what these lyrics are about, as this is where it sounds like they are becoming a Dethklok-like parody of themselves, and perhaps if it was another band it would matter more, as right when it;'s going to hit you the wrong way they do something more interesting. They also have more shredding guitar solos if you are into that kind of thing. It is only fitting a song called "Ecstasy in Decay " is accented by a darker throbbing throb. The arrangements are beginning to cross over into a more technical side of death metal here. Perhaps they felt like they should be taken more seriously on this album? 

They do not have a lot of "satanic-themed songs" unlike some of their Tampa friends in Deicide or Morbid Angel, which lyrically makes 'Raped by the Beast" more unique. The song works for what they do it's one of the more straightforward approaches on this album. "Coffinfeeder" has enough groove to it despite its rapid attack to work for me. There is more of an atmospheric lead-in to "Hacksaw Decapitation" than what the subject matter seems to call for. I would have used it for "Raped By the Beast", so there are my two cents on it. Some of the riffs are pretty crushing though. " Blowtorch Slaughter' reminds me a little of "Hammer Smashed Face".  "Sickening Metamorphosis " feels a little rushed from the manic manner they pound into it.  The last song uses the dynamics of chaotic to less chaotic as its formula, So your preference to this sort of thing should be weighed against it., there is a killer riff that crops up for what would be the last verse, but cool riffs do not a good song make, applies to everyone. I will give this album a 9, so solid and professionally done, like they had something to prove, I had forgotten this album existed so a nice "new" find.

 

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Death is June - Cannibal Corpse's "Butchered at Birth"

 Cannibal Corpses' second album feels like it began to set them apart not only from their influences but from other death metal bands. This is where they began the current wave of gore grind. The tempo shift on "Meat Hook Sodomy" feels more like their calling card than any of the songs on the first album. "Gutted" finds hooky riffs balancing out the more brutal in-your-face blasting. Things are more straightforward on "Living Dissection". The mix is a little weird on this album, as the snare pops up front and the other drums patter around it, as the guitars sit behind the vocals during the verses. The guitars do prove they are very capable of packing a punch with their chug on "Under Rotted Flesh". 

"Covered With Sores" is more deliberate and rooted in thrash. Then things speed up and they bring that stiff snare pat that I am not into. It is like a precursor to how blast beats are used now. They do break this up with a pretty razor-sharp riff. "Vomit the Soul" is a great song title. Lyrically things are kept at such a guttural grunt that it's hard to tell if the lyrics measure up to. Glen Benton joins Chris on the chorus, which is a moment for Tampa's death metal. It is one of the few songs that has Satanic references in it by these guys so it makes sense that Glen should be there for it. 

The title track is pretty straightforward. It works for what they do, but "Vomit the Soul" is a better song. On "Rancid Amputation" they show you a little of their keen sense for riffing in its early stages before ramping up into a faster blasting there is a Slayer touch to the riffs, which they return to. The last song might not be the album's most melodic, but it does deliver the bulldozing riffs that lend their attack a larger-than-life feel, that has since become the band's calling call. It does have some impressive drumming. I will give this album a 9, it's solid, but not their best. 

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Death is June : Looking Back in Anger at Cannibal Corpse's "Eaten Back to Life"

How well has the band's debut album held over the years? Well, that is what I will listen to and find out. I am listening to the remastered version which does have a more compressed feeling that sheds some of the rough edges that might have haunted the band from the late 80s production value that Scott Burns was still ironing out over at Morrisound Studios which is the classic standard for the Tampa death metal sound. Chris Barnes still had youthful power to his growl. This is the sound of a band as hungry as the cannibals referenced on this album. The second song is just as hammering though it does not feel as rushed, but there is still the machine-like crunch that Scoot dialed in for Deicide. You can also hear a more thrashing gallop. 

"Put Them to Death" has that punk influence that gave grindcore its attitude, here it's being run through the filter of death metal. They go for a more straightforward blasting regarding their attack on "Mangled". The powerful chug that runs through this song anchors it and keeps things from feeling too rushed. The gang vocal in the chorus is also a nice touch. I still do not like the stiff snare pattern that keeps time for the verses. "Scattered Remains, Splattered Brains" starts off with a kick-ass riff, then goes into what they do, though, at this point in time, it was less predictable. The first song I can say I have noticed a Slayer influence on. 

The more deliberate moments of "Born in a Casket' are what makes it stand out to me. "Rotting Head" finds the more rushed hyper-aggression of the genre, balanced out by thrash sensibilities that are absent from "The Undead Will Feast". I do like the effects that get put on Chris's vocal at the end. With a song like "Bloody Chunks," it's clear the influence "Hell Awaits" had on death metal. "A Skull Full of Maggots" is more of a feral speed fest. The vocal phrasing makes the song feel rushed, but it works on the chorus. "Buried in the Backyard" picks up where the previous song left off. They do lock into the machine-like chug of the era. I will give this album a 9, a case of where the band's first album is not their best, but it is a solid taste of what is to come. 

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the Class of 92 - Deicide: "Legion"

 

When this came out Deicide was one of my favorite metal bands, but I felt this was too stripped down and streamlined in terms of the vocals, which I liked the more layered approach of the first album, but how has it held up over the year. They come out with a wrath aggression. Death metal works off its hyper aggression Deicide's sole focus was attacking Christianity which is a fair enough target if not low hanging fruit. Normally I would say with extreme metal, after the first song hits you with it's sheer heaviness the next question is ...Ok but can you write a song. Their first album answered this with a yes. The question now ,  was are they really feeling this or just dialing it in.  "Dead But Dreaming" is a tight motherfucking machine that bulldozes you. Huge props to the mix as everything sits where it feels like it is just rolling over you in terms of where the guitars sit in relation to the drums, and the bass is audible to help with this.  

By the time I get to "Repent to Die" , I begin to wonder if Deicide ruined death metal for because, really when you hear the dense blitz of riffs they throw at you, pretty much all the tricks you heard death metal bands trying to pull from 93 on they already touched on here. His growl is less demonic and more enunciated on this album which might be what I did not like as much as a teenager but can now appreciate.  The only difference in my tastes now is I normally require music that is more dynamic than this , but the riffs on this album a pretty bad ass, and the key is how tight it is. There is a uniformity beginning to creep over the sound and I have listened to this album too many times back in the day to know that nothing is going to change in that regard. 

"Behead the Prophet" has some effective punches, and their overall sound is dialed in here, the vocal phrashing is pretty much what makes this song work. He spits out his lyrics in an even faster bark on "Holy Deception" . These days I am not into death metal that is this ripping fast, because I want to hear the nuances of song writing, and most bands do not make the kinds of dynamic shifts that Deicide does on "In Hell I Burn". There are no plans to slow down on "Revocate the Agitator". It somehow all works, in part thanks to the purposeful snarl of the vocals.  This death metal masterpiece gets a 10, there are not many albums like this style of death metal I like but this is one of them . 

Cannibal Corpse : "Red Before Black"

14 albums in, I don't expect any surprises when it comes to these guys. They have become much more polished over the years. While I prefer Chris Barnes, I have accepted Corpsegrinder as their singer by now. It might be my ears , but it doesn't sound like Corpsegrinder's vocals are as low and guttural as what I recall hearing previously. He is at more of a mid-ranged bark with certain words accented with more of a growl. This albums feels more frantic than the others though this also might be a case of the guitars being more polished . The vocals are not the only thing that doesn't sound like it carries the same weight of the low end. The guitar tones are mixed with more mids in them as well. I remember the guitar tone from the previous album have a meaner more ballsy tone, where as this has more of a thrash feel.

This also might be how they are played as when the chords slow down on the intro to "Code of the Slashers" it sounds heavier. This is the sound I prefer from these guys as I think Cannibal Corpse doesn't sound good at ultra fast speeds as it sounds like they are rushing through the songs. Toward the end of the song when he growling about ending your fucking life they lock into a really powerful chug. By the time it gets to "Shedding My Human Skin" it's evident that lyrically these guys are not as graphic as they have once been. Four songs in and I have not once heard a reference to any sexual mutilations. The album art work also reflects this as it just depicts the blood splatter of some one slinging a knife. This is from a band known for having their album art work band, and considering the fact their record label no longer has big chain record stores to appease it seems like they are getting soft in their old age.

"Remaimed" is a decent enough song. Better than any band trying to imitate them but not what I would call classic Cannibal Corpse. The come at you with a renewed rage on "Firestorm Vengeance". They proclaim " no mercy for the merciless"  and the guitar work is more intricate , but it doesn't have the same dangerous feel as their older work. They demonstrate the kind of single minded aggression death metal is known for on "Heads Shoveled Off". The main riff to this one has more drive and almost a groove to it's chug before the more blasted sections. Corpsegrinder's tone might not be as brutal but the lyrics are easier to make out on this album. Their bassist claims this album has a rawness that goes beyond what they've done, but I think it's more compressed and streamlined. This is not uncompromising , but rather the sound of death metal compromises. Not in a plea for radio play, so I would not say it's a sellout.

It might be this album's need for speed that makes it not come across as heavy to me. "Scavenger Consuming Death" does grind into the riff on the chorus for a more engaging listen than just trying to blast past you. While one of the stronger songs I did have to go back and give "In the Midst of Ruin" a second listen. I think even the faster portions of this song work with what they are doing because there are more shifts in dynamics. I guess the "kill or be killed" section of the song is the chorus as it makes the rest of the song work. "Destroyed Without a Trace" is more in your face and straight forward, not that this album throws many curve balls or ever becomes introspective. "Hideous Ichor" is another cut and dry beating to your ear drums. I do prefer how the drums and guitars lock in on this one more than what happened on the previous song. I'll give this album a 8.5, it's solid and shows the other bands who this is done, it just depends on if you need more than the meat and potatoes of what is being done here and makes you wonder if they should take a few more chances, though I think where the edge they used to hold was in the more gorey grit of their old lyrical approach.