Using Sickness as a Hero

This record forced me to consider the limits of the death metal genre. Perhaps there is a threshold, beyond which any further experimentation becomes detrimental to the genre's essence. This seems contradictory because progression was hardwired into death metal from the beginning. All the formative bands broke musical boundaries through rebellious experimentation. Human Remains formed when the genre was settling into a formula. They were experimenting with 'volume swells' and other tricks when most of their contemporaries were happy just to copy the bigger bands. The "Using Sickness as a Hero" EP on Relapse Records marks the end of their six-year career. It is a cult record that has been surprisingly influential. Apparently, Luc Lemay's attendance at a Human Remains show inspired him to make "Obscura". The ripples are still felt today.

Ironically, this record the least innovative and progressive thing Human Remains ever did. The band did not break any boundaries here, they merely consolidated what they had already done. Five of these six songs had already been recorded, some twice over. This is the third appearance for "Human", "Rote", and "Swollen", and the second for "Chewed up and Spit Out" and "Weeding out the Thorns". The only new song is "Waste of Time" (not counting the John Cage homage known as "Beyond Human Comprehension"). I presume the band wanted to record these songs properly and give them an official release, nothing more nothing less. Relapse gave them the platform to do this.

I don't blame Human Remains for wanting to re-record this stuff because they were still ahead of the game. The production here is excellent. For 1996, they managed to avoid the irritating triggered drum sounds that were swamping the death metal scene. Dave Witte had no need for triggers, he was talented and fast enough to play these songs without them. The rest of the band were accomplished musicians as well. They all seem to be playing within themselves, perfecting their performances of existing songs rather than pushing themselves by writing even more complex stuff. Vocalist Paul Miller has found his mojo again, he is not quite as ungodly as he was on early Human Remains material (such as "Admirations Most Deep and Foul"), but he still sounds good. I would describe his vocals as halfway between John Tardy and a typical late 90's hardcore-style scream.

The problem is the songs themselves. The latter half of the band's career was characterised by over-use of weirdness and gimmicks. It was clever but was also less efficient and effective than the band's earlier material, and some of their innovations were downright annoying. Nearly every song on here has a ridiculous plinky plonk guitar effect on it. This invariably interrupts the flow. My favourite song is "Waste of Time" because of its relative simplicity. This one has a solid hardcore/grindcore basis. The jazzy break in the middle is integrated properly, enhancing the flow rather than detracting from it. This song might be the prototype for what Dave Witte would do in bands like Discordance Axis and Burnt by the Sun. It is the only song I really connect with on this EP.

"Using Sickness as a Hero" is an interesting and contradictory record. True, there were better releases from the New Jersey metal/hardcore scene. Rorschach's "Protestant" is a better historical reference point for anyone seeking the avant-garde, metallic sound. The Dillinger Escape Plan’s “Under the Running Board” would deliver on the violent angularity that Human Remains promised here. For those coming from a death metal perspective, the earlier Human Remains material is superior (particularly "Admirations Most Deep and Foul"). Overall, “Using Sickness as a Hero” is an important record but not one that bears repeated listens.

Human Remains Using Sickness As A Hero is a tiny EP from a barely noticed underground band that somehow managed to garner an outsize influence on those few who actually heard it. Eighteen years after its initial release, it remains a curious relic for those interested in the roots of albums like Gorguts' Obscura and/or for fans of Dave Witte's outstanding drumming.

This is one weird record from one weird band. Something must have been in the water in New Jersey in the mid-90's because that scene turned out a lot of influential bands that turned metal on its head. Though ostensibly death metal, Human Remains is very grind oriented with lots of prog, noise, and avant-garde influences. The riffing on a track like "Weeding Out The Thorns," while grounded in death metal, is noisy, spastic, and unhinged. Morphing into a weird tapping seque between blast sequences and lots of chugging hardcore grooves, the entire song sounds like taped-together fragments of different styles that somehow lock together in some weird, puzzling way. "Waste Of Time" begins with a typical d-beat attack but that disintigrates into cryptic, very sloppy grind-blasts and weird off-time chugs. Both tunes signify an approach that is violent, manic, and imprecise. Despite this, the tunes are oddly coherent in their asymmetrical oddness. Other bands as disparate as Gorguts and Dillinger Escape Plan would improve upon this aspect of the Human Remains sound. "Rote" is ground zero as the one track you can most point the finger at as its super weird skronky riffs, off-kilter rhythms, and harshly strained vocals aim directly at what Gorguts refined just two years later with Obscura.

With time and refinement, Human Remains could've really developed into a musical force. They were just a touch ahead of their time and were defunct well before their ideas were cultivated and improved upon by others. Everyone involved in this band went on to found other bands of lasting importance, including Deadguy, Burnt By The Sun, Discordant Axis, Gridlink, and more. That's quite a legacy for an EP that quickly went out-of-print and a band that only played out a few dozen times.

What is to be said for a tiny slab of unique spazz-grind with nice hints of old school death metal that has already stood the test of time? Well, not a lot is needed to be said, yet a lot can be. I have made sure to have this one in my collection since the "glory days" when all extreme metal was welcome to exist together (I don't know what is wrong with today's fans...).

I'll just describe its main characteristics, forgoing the mentioning of too much outside musical dogma. The first thing that always stood out to me was the crazy guitar approach. It's as if these fellas learned how to play while working at a circus (let your mind run away with that one, for any conclusion it comes to will be a fun one. Trust me.). Also the fact that the very grind-rooted drums can keep up with such tomfoolery is nothing short of amazing...if not amusing. The vocals have quite the unusual Van Drunen (Asphyx, Pestilence, Hail Of Bullets) sound, strangled and painful, yet still manage to keep the grind feel. Some really fun samples can be found on this one as well.

As for much else, well, it's a sixteen minute frolic in playful sickness. Other than praising the odd and grotesque album artwork, I have nothing else to say but opinions, which are: I love it, find it essential, and you should buy it and push the "repeat" button since you won't get your fill from the short duration. It's just too fun for that kind of listening.

Circus sideshows, industrial ventilation fans and a whole heaping load of mad-scientist-experimentation gone terribly wrong, "Using Sickness As A Hero" is seemingly influenced by random objects and, in the case of Paul Miller's vocal approach, Patric Mamali and John Tardy's lovechild. Ultimately seven songs of recklessly composed fragmented riff ideas and bizarre transitions that never develop fully.

Sludgy guitar tones and a penchant for bending virtually a note in every riff, clearly Jim Baglino and Steve Procopio were moving towards a goal of shunning any notion of pretentiousness or virtuosity. Dave Witte shines amidst guitar sludge and Teddy Patterson's furry bass. It seems Dave had the opportunity to basically use any part of his kit and his playing is in stark contrast to his drumming in Municipal Waste.

"Swollen," starts the album for me. Yeah, its the fifth song but its the first one that actually made me curious. It's the first song on the EP that actually made me want to hear the rest of the song. I can't say that I enjoyed where the song went - ultimately the song dissolved into a platter of out of place riffs all connected with those aforementioned transitions. "Human" contains Pikmin voices in the intro and a bass so fuzzy that Jame's peach was jealous. "Rote's" initial genetic make-up is equally awash in guitar widdles, like scraping the strings with a paper clip at varying speeds.

A massive amount of consideration was put into the last track on this EP. "Beyond Human Perception," if my copy serves me correctly, is, ultimately thirty nine seconds of silence. You be the judge on that attempt at musical philosophy.