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Abuse > Like a Virgin > Reviews
Abuse - Like a Virgin

Fun Brutal Death Metal - 80%

ParabolaX, December 26th, 2011

I used to think death metal was evil.

I was 14 then. Not much time has passed, and now I like the genre. I can like evil music (Gnaw Their Tongues fan here!), but I realize that death metal is rarely evil. And if you're a band like Abuse, you might even be the opposite of it.

To a metal neophite or an outsider, it might sound evil. But I have heard the nuances of death metal and Abuse is fun. They have silly titles, silly pseudonyms for their members, and lyrics that probably are tongue-in-cheek (for all I know; damn unpublished lyrics). It's almost like a way to lure some guy into thinking he's buying a glam record. The wannabe "sexy" cover, titles that might have been shocking in the 80's (or perhaps "Anal Cunt-lite"), a shiny yet rather easy to read logo. It's a joke, and a mildly amusing one at that.

The actual music inside isn't bad, even behind some joking. I'm not the biggest connoisseur of brutal death metal, but Abuse is an enjoyable band. The riffs are gritty and grimy, deep and resonant, and dripping with the gore and depraved sex of brutal death metal. And pinch harmonics. Just the way I like it. Interestingly enough, only half the vocals are really in the brutal death metal territory, higher pitched growls giving a slight old-school feel to them, yet touching base with grindcore in a way. When deep gutterals are used, it thankfully veers away from the pitch-shifting and inhaling that keeps plaguing death metal. It has a somewhat natural feel to them, which I'm thankful for.

Also, the drummer here is pretty good. He blasts, he can keep a breakdown interesting, he has the trademark deep fills of brutal death metal. And he is one of the best parts of the album. His fills can feel complex, and they're everywhere in Like a Virgin. Definitely keep listening for him.

The songwriting isn't very varied, kind of repetitive at times. Thankfully, Like a Virgin generally keeps the dirty atmosphere and subtle fun in check, so it's still a good listen. Satirically dirty and not really that evil, Like a Virgin is yet another addition to the ever-growing subset of extreme and slightly silly bands, but they have chops. The growler can growl, the drummer can drum, the guitarist has a nice handle of his instrument, and the bassist, well, I didn't pay much attention to him. I'll assume he's good.