Horrid Mass--Nauseating Ecstatic Degeneration (CD/LP) (2026 Memento Mori Records/Night Terrors Records)

memento-mori.es

7/10 CRUSHED FUCKING SKULLS

This is the first full length from Milwaukee's death merchants Horrid Mass, following up a demo from three years ago. They sound like a bastard combination of Autopsy and Incantation, but with perhaps some influence from the gasmask metal set with stiff blastbeats and string scrapes. The vocals are cavernous, sounding like they were recorded in an old well after the rest of the band gave up trying to save the singer after he fell down it. I like the raw edge to the recording - it's just this side of noisy, but tempered perfectly with proper levels and a natural drum sound. This is another band that uses textures to add to the songwriting, and it's often the bass guitar adding a layer of grit overtop the rest of it all. I usually don't like this style very much, but there's something about this band that is just a little different, and I can't really pinpoint what it is so that I can tell you dear readers. Suffice it to say that this is a satisfying listen of dark and noisy death metal, and if you like that style, you'll love this record.

Concrete Icon--Voracious Streams (CD/CS) {2025 Memento Mori Records}

www.memento-mori-es

7/10 CRUSHED FUCKING SKULLS

This is the third full length from this Finnish death metal act. They focus on heaviness over speed, and they do this with jagged riffs that snake in and out of the rhythms with ease. It very much puts me in mind of some early Gorguts meterial in a way, but with a bit more groove to add to the heaviness. There's a technical aspect to the band for sure, with some off-kilter rhythms and complicated riffs. The vocals are delivered in a mid-ranged mostly understandable growl, the singer's diction and patterns being very well-developed. It's not terribly intense material up until the blastbeats hit, which kicks it up a level, mainly because it's mostly mid-paced. As I mentioned, heaviness and atmosphere over intensity and speed. But, when they do kick into high gear, it's very effective and suitably ferocious. I enjoyed this record quite a bit, and I look foward to digging into their back catalog.

Invictus--Nocturnal Visions (CD/LP/CS) {2026 Me Saco Un Ojo/Memento Mori/Iron Fortress Records}

www.mesacounojo.com

8/10 CRUSHED FUCKING SKULLS

Three venerable labels have come together to release this monster, a straight-forward death metal record that's heavy on the real metal feel. These guys are true maniacs, I can tell. They keep the intensity fairly high from song to song, which is nice to hear, but occasionally they lay back in the pocket to facilitate a lead or chorus. We get plenty of talented lead guitar work, which is truly unusual in death metal today, and honestly it's a breath of fresh air to hear a band do it. The vocals aren't super powerful, but what they lack there they make up for with their guttural tone. They're smooth and evil-sounding, reminding me a bit of Dying Fetus' low growls with a more old school flavor. These guys remind the listener at some point in each song that they can both play and write a good song, as well. They're truly gifted musicians. This was very enjoyable overall, and a worth purchase for the deathmaniacs in the scene.

Coffin Curse--The Continuous Nothing (CD) {2024 Memento Mori Records}

www.memento-mori.es

7/10 CRUSHED FUCKING SKULLS

Chilean band Coffin Curse has been around since 2012, and this is their second full length. I can hear a myriad of influences in their sound, but most notably Autopsy, Morbid Angel, and Deicide. If I had to guess, I might also accuse them of having Sadistic Intent and Possessed as influences! I can hear it in the riffs and the drumming. The guitars are quite bright on this recording, and the record is rightly focused on them, but all the instruments are audible and the mix is perfect for death metal. The rhythm section gets a real workout, with the bass and drums working in tandem to create a rumble to rival any band, and sticking tightly to one another. The vocals are a deep growl with some serious power behind it, with a rich tone and a chesty sound with excellent vocal patterns. There are some really catchy songs here, with the most catchy probably being "Reeking Filth of Ages," with its stop/start beginning. Plus, that song title kicks ass. This entire record is worth hearing, and this is indeed a bit of an older release so it might be harder to find, but it is indeed worth it.

Dipygus "Dipygus" (Review)

Dipygus Dipygus

2024 Headsplit Records (CS) / Memento Mori (CD) / Crypt of the Wizard (LP)

headsplitrecords.blogspot.com

7/10 CRUSHED FUCKING SKULLS

This is the 3rd, and eponymous, full length from this California band. It's dark and primitive death metal that reminds me a little of Pungent Stench and a lot of Autopsy. The bass guitar is truly prominent in the mix, acting almost like a third guitar, adding textures throughout. It just sounds huge. They feature, at times, some truly off-kilter riffing that comes as a surprise every time. They took the chassis of Autopsy and really made something unique of it, especially with the horror-movie inspired synths (or guitar effects, maybe?) throughout the record in key places. The guitar solos are quite talented and we get quite a few of them. The vocals are powerful and deep growls that have a cavernous effect on them, giving them a sense of being bigger and atmospheric. The cover art is quite good - in fact, it's a great visual representation of their sound. I couldn't explain the band better than monolith-worshipping cavemen with a possibly cannibalistic bent. It's accurate. I didn't really need a ten-plus minute long song to finish off the record, but we get one anyway, and it's more like several songs mashed together. That's the only real flaw here. Otherwise, it's a fitting addition to their catalog, and one that I would recommend to anyone that needs more horror-influenced death metal in their collection.

Dipygus "Dipygus" (Review)

Dipygus "Dipygus"

2024 Memento Mori Records (CD) / Crypt of the Wizard Records (LP) / Headsplit Records (Cassette)

www.memento-mori.es

I was vaguely aware that I'd missed a lot of Dipygus' discography over the past few years, but I'm glad this came across the review desk when it did. Dipygus clearly interprets their death metal anti-art through the lens of old Autopsy, which is perfectly fine with me! They don't exactly clone them, which is nice. They also keep it a bit primitive, much like Rademassaker from Germany, who, like these guys, have a prominent bass sound. There seems to be a bit of Massacre in their sound as well, perhaps pre-prog Death in the solo department. 

The artwork is perfect, and it seems the cryptid obsession continues - the last thing I'd heard from this band was the 2018 EP "Long Pig Feast," which also had a tune about a cryptid. I like it. It's an unusual subject for metal to explore, and I would like to see more of this. All of the songs are quite varied, with a ton of killer riffs and some short solos. One thing that stood out to me is the creepy-ass synths that are used in the doomier portions of the record - this is a great idea, as it drives home the horror aspect. They're mixed perfectly, as well, not overpowering the actual songs in which they appear.

I don't have a ton to say about the record otherwise, except that it's excellent, and if you like the more primitive end of death metal, this shit's for you. I love everything about the album, and I look forward to catching up on Dipygus' back catalog, as well as being on the lookout for new material from them. They have the true feel of real death metal!

They also have one of the most badass logos on the planet.

Mutagenic Host "The Diseased Machine" (Review)

Mutagenic Host "The Diseased Machine" 

2025 Dry Cough Records (LP and European Cassette) / Gurgling Gore Records (US Cassette) / Memento Mori Records (CD)

www.drycoughrecords.com / www.gurglinggore.com / www.memento-mori.es

BADASS TRACKS: All of them, motherfucker.

BADASS SONG TITLES: The Twisted Helix, Incomprehensible Methods of Slaughter, Organometallic Assimilation, Artificial Harvest of the Obscene

BADASS SHORT DESCRIPTION: Heavy as FUCK

This review is a bit short because I'm not going to bother going through this album in bits like I do some albums. Why, you ask? Because I don't fuckin' need to, since this album is setting the clear benchmark for death metal in the year to come. Every track has purpose, every track has hooks, every track is well-written, and every track is HEAVY AS FUCK. Period. This one crushed my face, and since receiving the cassette in the mail from Gurgling Gore (a record label that I've come to trust as a home for sick underground death metal in the same way that Headsplit has been), I've listened to it five times, and the 6th right now as I write.

Mutagenic Host comes from the UK, and their sound is a bit like if you stripped the overt melodicism from Bolt Thrower's latter-day works, sprinkled the early 1990s Tampa sound on the remains, and added some Midwest brutal death metal grooves. They actually remind me a lot of Gutted from Toledo, OH, and perhaps a little bit of Descendent from the same city. They, too, delivered heavy-ass, chunk-filled grooves at a mid-paced velocity and didn't overuse the blast beat. When Mutagenic Host uses blasts, it serves the song structure. I like blast beats as much of the next guy, but a band like this should hang in the pocket just like they are, and let the sheer fuckin' heaviness of the music reign, and not the speed, so much. Even the intros, outros, and interludes have their purposes, with all kinds of crazy machine noises and almost telling a horrific science fiction tale. It's nice not to have to sit through the same old stuff in that regard. There are just a lot intros out there, and doing them differently is a huge plus. I may be wrong, but I sometimes think I hear a bit of Celtic Frost or Hellhammer in their sound, also.

I'm not going to waste any more of your time describing this slab of industrial-strength steel. This is real death metal for real death metalists, as I'm so often fond of saying. Posers beware! It'll wipe them out at even low decibel levels. Just go buy this, and you'll get heavy as fuck death metal that shows no compromise and no remorse, and wastes posers at 1000 yards. I'm a fan now, and I cannot wait to see what they do next. As far as what version to buy, if you're in the US and you like cassettes, the Gurgling Gore version is really nice with a transparent green cassette with the band logo printed nice and big right on both sides. Even the case is great, because the rear of the case is a teal color that matches the purple and teal cover art nicely.