Karma.Bloody.Karma
Label: Metal Blade
Length: LP
Media: CD
Format: Album
WorkNameSort: Karma.Bloody.Karma
Dirty hippies need to stand way back, as Travis Ryan’s viciously vegetarian grindcore band may appeal to your dietary sensibilities but will likely leave you trembling in fear for your life. (And perhaps puking up your tofu, too.) For the past few years, this ‘pro-vegetarian/anti-humanâ?� crew has been a beacon of hope for the creatively (and lyrically) spent genre of gore-metal; their lyrics would make the members of Carcass queasy, but their music is equally jaw-dropping. By beefing up a post-Crass political vehemence with a rapid-fire muscularity, Ryan and his constantly rotating lineup of Decapitators consistently defy expectations. Blistering half-minute assaults have been upgraded to four-, five- and even near-eight-minute blasts of brutality, making Karma the most remorselessly abusive Cattle Decapitation disc yet. Ryan is the most effective when he jams 10 minutes worth of sonic hell into two, as he does on ‘Bereavement,â?� a pinched-blister bit of negativity that serves as the disc’s climax. Hail seitan!
This article appears in Jul 5-11, 2006.