Wedding the Grotesque

Dr Shrinker's second demo was a quantum leap forward in terms of heaviness and song writing. Their first one ("Recognition") was a decent little blast of obscurity but there is no reason for anyone to listen to it nowadays. "Wedding the Grotesque" was recorded with almost the same line-up (plus a second guitarist), but the band were transformed from simple crossover thrash into an absolute death metal monster.

Within 30 seconds of "Tools of the Trade" you can hear exactly what Dr. Shrinker are about. This demo begins with a B-movie horror sample (although I think it might be from the TV show 'Dr. Shrinker' where the band takes their name). Then it blitzes into a fast-paced galloping Teutonic thrash riff with harsh, rasping vocals on top (which sound like someone gargling glass). A heavier, nastier version of Kreator's "Pleasure to Kill" would be a good comparison, at least until about 90 seconds in, when the pace drops and the band start chugging. This filthy mid-paced section gives it a lot more weight than the song would otherwise have. It then switches between thrashing and chugging a couple more times before coming to a dead-stop.

This formula is used throughout. There are twelve songs in all, some of them are catchier and more effective than others. The best one is "Mesmerization (of a Corpse)", a filthy, disgusting slab of death metal. There are so many awesome parts in this one. It starts with some harmonizer-assisted vocals over a sickening groove. There is a slow, Sabbathy section at 1:57 which is similar to what Autopsy would later do on "Mental Funeral". There is another riff at 3:21 which Carcass would copy for "Corporal Jigsore Quandary" (I don't know whether the members of Carcass ever heard this though). The whole song has a clear narrative structure, everything flows and makes sense, all the riffs hit home and it sounds really fucking extreme. Death metal does not get much better than this song.

Other highlights include "Fungus", which has some of the meanest chugging I've ever heard. "Rawhead Rex" is catchy, has some great Slayer-type riffs, a singable chorus and some semi-amusing monster lyrics. "Open-Heart Surgery" is the fastest and most vicious song and the vocals reach new levels of viciousness during the chorus (imagine what Rob Halford's evil twin might sound like if he woke up during actual open heart surgery). "Chunk Blower" is good too, mixing things up with a bit of distinctive mid-paced thrashing.

The guitar tone is amazing, a thousand times thicker than on their previous demo. This is the antithesis of a modern death metal production. Everything sounds untamed and it has an extremity that newer bands cannot hope to match. The overall sound is rough, hellish, and fits with the grainy B-movie atmosphere. The aesthetics and horror themes are akin to what Autopsy, Necrophagia, Repulsion and Carcass were going for (i.e., a combination of zombies, reanimation, medical procedures, genetic experiments, etc). The use of movie samples gives it a tongue-in-cheek feel, especially for "Dead by Dawn" and the title track. I much prefer this sort of lyrical/thematic content to the contrived nonsense of bands like Cannibal Corpse and Broken Hope.

Being honest, "Wedding the Grotesque" is a bit too long at 47 minutes and would benefit from some trimming. It uses the fast/chug/fast/chug trick a few too many times. Some parts feel unfinished, there are several riffs that cry out for a solo which never arrives (e.g., from about 3:02 of "Fungus"). Tellingly, "Bacterial Encroachment" was later reworked into a much better song (as evidenced on the band's rehearsal tape from 1990). A couple of songs feel samey and lack a decent hook ("No Way to Live", "Pronounced Dead"). Nonetheless, there is enough charisma and momentum here to make up for any minor flaws. "Wedding the Grotesque" is perfect for anyone who wants vicious, primal death metal.

I mean, come on, we’re talking 12 songs taking over 47 minutes. I wish a label had picked up this band back in those days. I wish the Shrinker boys had re-recorded this ‘demo’ as a full length (with Scott Burns or Colin Richardson doing the honours) and then maybe the band would’ve had more success and the world would have gotten more of their characteristic music for sure. Such a waste losing them.

Was Dr. Shrinker original? No, musically they were not. It’s just plain aggressive thrash metal with a few death metal riffs thrown in and the average pace is high. If was the vocals which really set them apart. Just like contemporary artists Korsakov from the Netherlands really (who also never got a record deal). Rich Noonan’s vocals are not death grunts in the commonly accepted manner. But 'death metal' certainly is the first genre which comes to mind when you hear him ‘sing’. It’s vile, it’s raspy, it’s gargling. It’s an evil hamster swimming through your innards. It’s everything you want to experience when you’re thinking of the term death metal in the most intrinsic sense of those words. He’s way up there with characteristic vocalist such as Chris Reifert as far as I’m concerned!

Now because of the average pace being high for 47 minutes and a lot of riffs being slightly interchangeable, one might find this demo quite monotone after a few songs but because of the dynamic vocals and incidental catchy choruses (Rawhead Rex, Chunk Blower) there is enough happening to keep you focussed the whole way.

So if you’re into fast old school death-thrash and like characteristic vocals instead of your average lower-than-low, shoe gazing, wind milling modern grunter, you will surely love this!

When I think of my days of writing to bands I get a bit nostalgic . That great feeling of walking down the street from where my school bus used to drop me off and hoping that day the metal gods would shine a ray of hope on my otherwise total crappy high school nightmare existence . The list was endless and sometimes I would lose track of which band that I wrote to and what demo tape I was expecting to come in the mail . Needless to say I kept track of Dr. Shrinker . I already loved their first demo and figured this one would be just as good as that . Or so i hoped . If not it didn't matter because they only charged me two bucks anyway .

That day came and with the package they sent me pictures of the band some flyers and a letter explaining that the tape I had written to them about (the live demo if memory serves me right) was no longer available and instead I should check out the enclosed demo which they just finished . I have to say I was at first a little pissed off because this isn't what i sent my two dollars in for . After calming down my teenage metal head temper I decided "screw it, they were cool enough to explain the situation" so i might as well give a listen . Listen i did, to be honest, I still to this day have never heard such a sick unique demo in my life . Now don't get me wrong this was the eighties and there were and are demo's that go down in metal history as scene defining moments of the underground but i don't need to name names here right? Right . Anyway back to the Dr. Shrinker . This demo is insanely sick . It was back then and still is today .

The first thing that hits you about this band was their unbelievable morbid twisted way they tell a story . Rich Noonan's voice and lyrics whispering in murderous sly snickering fashion . This guys voice was that of a complete individual with unique evil tones . Not that the guttural bottom of the barrel heavy style isn't amazing, it's just not how this guy sang . He seems to get a good laugh out of anything he graciously displays on this great demo . The voice is only the beginning of what makes this such a masterpiece to this very day .

The multiple guitar's on here are "hands down" some of the best you will ever hear . This band's song writing abilities were beyond phenomenal . One thousand percent completely their own . Nothing and i mean nothing sounds like Dr. Shrinker . The songs on this are macabre violent morbid creations about anything from great old horror movies to tales of primitive cannibalistic tribes wearing earrings made from your "family jewels" . This was not your run of the mill death metal demo filled with songs about murder and eating corpses although like any great demo it almost MUST contain a variety of that subject matter and does so; perfectly I might add . This was and is way more .

The drummer and bassist are not anything short of perfection on this . How could they not be with these songs ? The drumming is "Chris Reifart" (Autopsy) perfect on every single second of "Wedding the Grotesque" . Unique in his own right, he displays a style unlike anything else heard in the early demo days of the scene . This guy is a machine flowing perfectly with the slow chunky parts of the songs as well as the bone shattering machine-gun-like fast ones . The best drumming on one of the greatest demo's ever created .

I could go on and on about how completely different "Dr. Shrinker's Wedding the Grotesque" is but you should get the idea by now . I will forever be in awe of such a prefect contribution to my beloved scene . I will always be filled with the fondest of memories of long ago pulling this demo out of my mailbox and listening to it for the first time . It will, for this life long metal head bring up many feelings of both happiness and confusion . The confusion part of it being explained with only this statement; HOW THE HELL DIDN"T THIS BAND GET SIGNED ??? Remember this just like I always have; No matter how much you've consumed that day of a putrid festering vile rotten helping of everyday garbage music that "The Doctor Is In" to cure you of any of you music woes . You need to own this !