Grotesque Impalement

Grotesque Impalement is the first Dying Fetus song I ever heard, and it was this version from 2000, not the original version from 1993. This song is instantly recognizable, a fan favorite classic. Everyone loves "that part" at 1:20, as do I. It's filled to the brim with catchy riffs and moshable moments. My only hot take about the main event is that it's too long, it could easily have been 4 minutes or less. I had never really considered what else might be on the EP though, so let's see if it's worthwhile.

The covers are good, with one selection from Baphomet and one from Next Step Up. Streaks of Blood is certainly not bad, but ranks below the far catchier Next Step Up cover for me. I think something is lost in translation with the Baphomet cover, they didn't add in the eerie overdub during the descending riff, and the production overall doesn't serve it as well as the original. Bringing Back the Glory is actually a lot of fun, the breakdown is very well-handled and the dual vocals lend it more personality than the singular ones on Streaks of Blood. The other original song, Tearing Inside the Womb, is not quite as classic as Grotesque Impalement but will scratch the same itch. It's clear it shares a lot of DNA with the title track, as it's from the same release, but it repeats itself a lot less, making for a tighter experience. The way they interspersed that slower main riff helps glue the song together a lot better than the title track. The comedy songs are funny only once and are better off skipped on subsequent listens.

The redone originals are great, the covers are good, and the comedy songs aren't much to write home about. This is a good introduction to Dying Fetus if you haven't heard them before, but I wouldn't go as far as to say it's essential. That being said, it's also not skip-worthy. Bdm fans will likely prefer the original versions, with their rawer sound, though modern fans might like these better. If you want to hear Dying Fetus have fun with their back catalog, perform two songs they like, and goof off at the end, this has all of that... but not more.

Slam Is starting to become more prominent after the acknowledgement of Suffocation, Internal Bleeding, and Devourment, but Dying Fetus at the time were still trying to find their own sound, and flesh it out by letting you know who they were. Having listened to the half of their discography that being their later material that incorporated a lot of brutal death metal elements along with some groovy aspects added; they started their musical career with albums in the 90s and early 2000's that had a slam atmospheric sound to it, and that being releases such as this Ep Grotesque Impalement. They had a purpose of intending to keep the sound of slam or brutal death metal for that matter going by spawning the sound even more that Suffocation made famous. That being said, this Ep is a pretty solid release with a couple minor annoyances.

The musical elements that Dying Fetus craft is amazing. They know how to incorporate a lot of the stuff Suffocation started with and revolutionize it a bit. Its pretty evident because as I'm listening to this, John Gallagher sounds very synonymous like Frank Mullen which should be taken as a compliment because he's the only one to pull off a close copy-cat of the cookie monster vocals like Mullen which is sometimes is hard because the style the vocals used in here are coherent meaning John Gallagher is able to stay consistent with being easy to read/hear and still maintaining that brutal vocal sound.

The other musicians here know how to harness an instrument as well while still keeping up with the sound. The production is solid although i feel like the drums overpower a bit of the songs but the bass being audible makes up for that. All the musicians here are diverse in their own way so it doesn't seem so generic and overall a boring experience which is something that most bands lack today; and also conforming to a mainstream sound that doesn't fit my taste unfortunately which sometimes i ask myself what happened to the music we used to love a decade ago because of bands releasing "good music" like this.

There seems to be a minor annoyance on this Ep that I can't seem to shake off. While it is a good release and all, nothing feels memorable in this release although its a good album. While this sounds ironic i understand, but really the only track on here that stands out is "Tearing Inside the Womb". Reason being is because it has lyrics that are catchy and memorable like "TEARING INSIDE THE WOMB". Not to mention a slow tempo breakdown at the end .....yes a slam breakdown. So overall this pretty much justifies a lot in terms of the influence and contribution this band has on slam metal so i consider this to be relevant when i think of slam metal in general.

However, if you're looking for a more memorable and better release skip this unless you wanna check out "Tearing Inside the Womb", but other then that go ahead and check out their follow up which is a much more solid choice where they pick up where they left off from this.

Listening to this reissue of Dying Fetus' 2000 EP "Grotesque Impalement" is akin to listening to the sickening painful birth of 1001 abhorrent, bone-headed, chug-fest death metal bands such has been the influence of the early days of these modern legends. Of all the American bands that reached their peak following the scenes initial fluctuation Dying Fetus and Nile are by far the most important, yet it is these Marylanders with the greatest legacy left on others. In the title track and "Streaks Of Blood" (actually a Baphomet cover) is the development of the guttural, triggered, beatdown heavy version of death metal that in many ways is so different to the likes of Morbid Angel and Death from before them. The precision, brutal riffing of the bands more recent days is not particularly evident through this collection of tracks, with only moments of invention being found among the greater mass of standard fare which becomes even more exposed in the reissue bonus section where we are 'treated' to a couple of piss-about tracks and 2 fairly unremarkable unreleased/live numbers.

The most unfortunate aspect of DF's legacy is the trail of one-man bedroom bands such as Putrid Pile and Insidious Discrepancy for whose absence the world would be a much better place. Such acts must have modelled their lifeless, drained production techniques on what is found here; the drums in particular reeking of massively dullness and under-production, in the end sounding as if they were recorded 10 minutes before the EP's budget expired. Taken for the original "Grotesque Impalement" element of this release there is an average EP lurking in their somewhere, but let me recommend you 2009's brilliant "Descend Into Depravity" if you want Dying Fetus at their blistering best.

Originally written for www.Rockfreaks.net

The joke glam rock track that ends this EP is really better than any of Dying Fetus' real songs which is a pretty painful realization.

The only real importance this release has is that is possesses the best version of one of Dying Fetus' three best songs in the form of the title track. It's an absolute monster of a death metal song, and a definite oddity in the Dying Fetus catalog due to its oldschool aesthetic and ability to not suck at any point during the song. It's well structured and tense, changing tempo and rhythm at just the right moments to maintain the excitement of the listener; even the fast parts are engaging. But of course the whole point is That Riff. You'll know it when you hear it, it can't be missed.

The rest of the tracks are just whatever. Cover of New York death metal band Baphomet which loses most of its charm because it's Dying Fetus doing it. There's a hardcore cover which is okay, not because it's a particularly good cover, but because Dying Fetus is a better hardcore band than death metal one. The other original track is a bland Dying Fetus track. Really the only essential item here is the first track and the rest is just filler, which is unfortunate because the production is actually adequate for the first time at this point in Dying Fetus' career.

It's kind of essential if you're a Dying Fetus fan since there's no other recordings of 'Grotesque Impalement' except for the original demo version (which sucks). Of course you could just download the track instead, which I would to some degree recommend as the rest of the material here really isn't good enough to justify a purchase at full price. But remember, there's a great glam track to tease your hair to.

This is probably my favorite release by Dying Fetus, this is before they got all political. Now I'm the type of man who likes to leave his politics to the policians and gore to the death metal bands. Politics just take away from the fun of the music in my opinion. BUT, thankfully this is one of their early EPs, a delightful display of goregrinding death metal. Even the name, 'Grotesque Impalement' screams for the attention of gorehounds like myself.

There's really not too much to explain about the music here, it's really just solid shit. The vocal work, as always with DF is very low end and gutteral. It fits very well with the style of the music. The guitar work is really great, beefy riffs that almost sound thrash at times, only crunchier. They sound a little technical once in a while but nothing too crazy. They also do a great job of making their riffs sound heavy without doing any repetitive chug-chug riffs, everything sounds pretty original and creative.

Now on to the drums, I have to say with this band the drums have always been my favorite part of any of their albums. They sound unique compared to other death metal drums, even with typical double bass. When you hear a band do double bass, it sounds good but also sounds like most other bands. When you hear DF do double bass you know it's DF playing it. They almost create their own atmosphere. When you hear them do a blast, the snare just pulsates through your brain with such an intense tempo. It really does just sound sick as fuck and is one of the biggest reasons I can go back and listen to the same songs over and over again.

Now with the flaws, which are few, my main one being why does this have to be an EP!? I really wish there were more songs here. A few more solid tracks would really make this damn near a classic. Also the production can be a little rough at times but shit, that's one of the best parts about death metal and grind, the raw, gritty, aggressive sound.

To sum up, this is a pretty fun album. It's a great trip back to when grind wasn't annoying as fuck. Good ol' death grind with gore obsessed themes. What more could you ask for? Well if you seek nothing more, pick this up, it will not disappoint.

This EP, short as it is, is still pretty harsh, and an essential addition to any death metal collection.

Dying Fetus are without a doubt the kings of the Maryland death metal scene. One listen to ANY local death metal band (Misery Index, Severed Head, Covenance, Fuck U All) and their influence is quite obvious. One cool aspect about them is their friendships with many non-death locals, which will be touched on later in the review.

Grotesque Impalement, the song (also found on Infatuation With Malevolence), is standard DF fare, brutal death with all the typical elements. About a minute in comes one of the most intense sludge parts I've heard, follwed by a major headbanger riff, and I absolutely love it.

My favorite track on the CD is their cover of Bringing Back The Glory by Next Step Up. Next Step Up are to the Maryland hardcore scene as DF are to the metal scene. Vicious, brutal hardcore meant to punch your friends (as well as Nazi boneheads) in the face to. DF adds thier own touches (gurgly vocals, ripping double bass, and the transformation of one of the instrumental riffs into a grind frenzy), but, for whatever reason, does not let the end breakdown get as brutally sludgy and heavy as NSU's version. It's only a minor complaint, as I've probably listened to the cover as many times as the original, which is rare for me.

All of the other songs are damn good, especially the Baphomet cover, but the two above mentioned songs make the album worth buying alone. The band gets a chance to inject some humor into the later songs, which is always nice. Music should always have an element of fun. It is entertainment after all.....

With "Grotesque Impalement" Dying Fetus assaults us with the typical grinding death groove that they have seemingly made their trademarked sound. No other band seems to mend together both hardcore and grinding death quite as well as Dying Fetus has, and "Grotesque Impalement" is no exception to that. Sure, Pungent Stench did this in their heyday, but the style wasn't as abbrassive as what Dying Fetus has and continues to (or "tries to" some would even argue) capture.

I'm not completely sure when it was recorded in relation to the following album "Destroy The Opposition", however, "Grotesque Impalement" sounds like a collection of outtakes from those recording sessions. Only this is not nearly as good as "Destroy The Opposition" - which in my opinion is the best Fetus album they have yet released. Though this one may have a few rough spots here and there, it's still not bad for what it is. A release that exists more as a feasible bridge between the "Killing On Adreneline" and "Destroy The Opposition" albums.

The fact that John Gallagher is supported by the ballsiest of Dying Fetus' line-ups doesn't hurt either. Kevin Tally's drums are just sick. The man sounds like a machine, not a mortal being. Truely one of the best drummers to have came through the scene for sure. Then there's Jason Netherton's bass and ultra low pitched Carcass like growl backing this one up. Damn good start. Actually that was one of the things I always liked about Dying Fetus, the very interesting sound from the combination of John Gallagher and Jason Netherton's vocals.

This album actually is about as close as it comes to an all covers album without actually being an all covers album (if that makes sense). Next Step Up ("Bringing Back The Glory") and Baphomet ("Streaks of Blood") are both covered here. These two tracks run about 8 or so minutes combined. Though, comprising of six tracks in total, the album is just slightly under the 22 minute mark. Both of these covers, done in the Dying Fetus style, are highlights of the album, and not just meandering filler. They help to bridge the gap between the title track, and "Tearing Inside The Womb". The rest of the album seems as though the band decided to have some laughs and put it on tape. As "Final Scream (Prelude To Evil: Davey's Nightmare)" is simply a skit of some kid ("But I'm 26 years old" he retorts in a Mr Bill like voice) and his parent. Not sure who this is supposed to be about, if anybody, but it's pretty funny, and a nice break from the state-of-the-art carnage the band typically puts to album. A perfect set-up for "Hail Mighty North / Forest Trolls Of Satan (Anno Clitoris 666 Opus II)" which obviously is making direct fun of black metal bands of the time. In retrospect this serves as a much more isolated, and obscure version of the Spinal Tap movie in relation, aimed at the black metal genre as a whole perhaps. However, it is also done in such a way...well...Dying Fetus doing pseudo-GLAM METAL!? Hillarious. That's about the only thing to say about this one. Overall a good way to end the album, and to throw a bit of obscure diversity into the mix that the band wouldn't be able to get away with on a "regular" album. Not counting the lyrics for some of their albums, such as the ones for the "Kill Your Mother / Rape Your Dog" track, of course.

This is a great album, and well worth picking up. If only for the hillarity contained herein. Of course, there's quite a bit more than just a running joke through the album. There are some seriously chunky riffs here, great drumming, and overall great songs and musicianship. Could do a lot worse.