The legacy of UK extreme metal legends, Carcass, stretches back a long way. The trailblazing unit were one of the pioneers of Grindcore (as well as its offshoot: Gore-grind) and Melodic Death Metal during one of extreme metal’s most stunning musical evolutions.
17 years have passed since their last studio album, but with new blood in the mix and a rejuvenated burst of inspiration, Carcass has delivered one of the most remarkable comeback albums in recent memory. Surgical Steel not only far exceeds the dodgy expectations afforded to comeback albums, but is likely to blow away the loftiest expectations of the most ardent Carcass fan. Surgical Steel transcends the common comeback traits of a band competently re-treading past glories, forging something fresh and inspired to sit comfortably alongside the band’s classic releases from yesteryear.
The band’s original duo of Bill Steer and Jeff Walker spearhead the new-look Carcass, and although young axe-slinger Ben Ash has since joined the band on second guitar, Steer handled all the guitar parts for the album. New drummer Danny Wilding (Trigger The Bloodshed) makes a strong impression filling the sizable shoes of Ken Owen, adding a surge of youthful exuberance and technicality to the album. Meanwhile, Walker holds down the low-end with typical reliability, with his distinctive, semi-decipherable rasp sounding as potent as ever. Notably, Steer’s low growls return for the first time since Necroticism, adding further texture to the vocals and a nice throwback to their classic days.
Steer does much more than recycle tired riffs with the Carcass imprint, deftly balancing modern death metal trimmings with classic-sounding Carcass guitar work, defined by Heartwork-styled melodeath, tight technical riffage and swaggering grooves. His varied guitar work features a strong focus on memorable riffs whilst staying within sight of the album’s heavy bluster. Steer’s superb guitar solos exude style and grace, often elevating very good songs to an even higher plane of excellence. Credit must go to the veteran duo of Colin Richardson and Andy Sneap for their spot-on production and mixing efforts on the album. Richardson bailed on the album at the mixing phase after helping the band sculpt a sharp, polished and robust modern production, before Sneap finished it off with a stellar mixing job.
Surgical Steel culls heavily from the band’s mid-late era period, namely the twin guitar harmonies and slick melodeath of Heartwork, and to a lesser extent, the intricate death metal thrust of Necroticism. Throw in some of the stronger groove-based elements of the often harshly maligned Swansong album, and a smattering of their grind roots, and Surgical Steel pulls together many of the trademark Carcass elements into a cohesive modern union.
The title of instrumental intro, ‘1985’ alludes to their year of conception whilst signalling an uncharacteristically dramatic rebirth. The guitars call-out ominously before ‘Thrashing Abattoir’ detonates with ferocious intensity. Under two minutes of taut death metal fury atop a thrashy base, the song signals the band’s intentions in the most direct of ways. From here onwards, Carcass slice and dice their way through the album with renewed vigour and confidence. Even amidst Surgical Steel’s most brutal and grinding moments, the hooky, intelligent song-writing deployed throughout the album is never far from the surface.
While there’s nothing on the album close to resembling a dud, the mid-album stretch reveals many of Surgical Steel’s strongest moments. The super catchy, ‘A Congealed Clot of Blood’ has a burly framework complimented by neck-snapping grooves and a spiralling melodic solo. ‘The Master Butcher’s Apron’ unfolds with a brutal trail of blast beats that fluidly morph into a creeping slower groove, dominated by an incredibly catchy riff. The song’s dynamic structure features swift tempo changes and a blistering second half as the band hit the afterburners.
The addictive crunch of ‘Noncompliance to ASTM F 899-12 Standard’ has a slick modern death metal edge with charred tremolo-picked runs coupled with machine gun blast beats and speedy rhythms. ‘The Granulating Dark Satanic Mills’ supplies some of the album’s most addictive hooks through its catchy, numerically-coded chorus and Heartwork-styled riffs and melody. The album ends with the epic ‘Mount of Execution’, undoubtedly one of the most ambitious yet accessible songs Carcass has penned. The brooding juggernaut bounces along at a groovy mid-paced clip, as thrashy riffs, twin guitar harmonies and sweeping melody intertwines with catchy vocal hooks, before the song unloads with a killer bluesy breakdown at its climax.
I consider the band’s landmark releases, Necroticism and Heartwork, to be near flawless examples of extreme metal, with the song-writing on the aforementioned albums standing the test of time. With Surgical Steel, Carcass has crafted a remarkable album that sits a mere scalpel’s edge away from the lofty heights of that pair of classic albums.
9.5/10
Reviewer: Luke Saunders
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hVzgvsCWpQ