Ampütator

Ampütator is something of a darling in the underground black metal scene. I guess I can see why: they have a pretty accessible mixture of rawness with good playing ability and production values, so I guess it's raw black metal for people who don't like rawness. The band seems to present itself as more evil than they actually are when this is pretty good-time black/thrash overall. Anyway, the music's adequate enough so I won't dwell on the rather silly image.

Ampütator plays thrashy, punky black metal that seems to be all about being anti-social and hurting innocent people, which is good if not stirringly original. The riffing is pretty much all power chords and tremolo riffs while the lyrics are a dry, shouting screech. A drum machine races along, reasonably well programmed, but generally submerged under the morass of synthetically distorted guitars. The riffing is adequate; none of it's really good enough for me to enjoy hugely, but it does seem to have a peculiar catchiness, probably due to many of the melodies' roots in punk. The production is SOMEWHAT raw; it really sounds like a thin layer of static was added to everything after recording, as this isn't very convincingly raw in nature. Everything's played quite professionally and the songs are layed out in a coherent, orderly fashion. Nothing's really wrong with this music; it's subtle when appropriate and noisy when it needs to be, the riffs are varied and relatively interesting, and everything seems to be played with a more or less stable level of conviction. It doesn't grab me massively though; in practice, it all seems a bit trite, like they're trying to convince the listener of something through this demo instead of just making music. A weird criticism, but one I can definitely feel.

Anyway, it's decent enough black/thrash. Nothing amazing, but apparently many others disagree based on how popular Ampütator has gotten as of late. Grab it if you like oldschool black/thrash, which you probably do, since you're all a bunch of unoriginal bastards anyway.

Right, so what is the point of this? Are there really bands out there that think ripping off Blodulv is a legitimate musical venture? Blodulv were shit in the first place, but this takes it to an all new low.

If we start on their image, easily the best aspect of the band, we see the gas masks, chains, spikes and bullet belts and an album cover depicting the aftermath of a bombing, we start to think we might enjoy this. Then we have a look at the logo (like Blodulv's, it looks like a skate brand) and our opinion of their image diminishes a bit, but not enough to keep us away from their music.

Musically, its simplistic powerchord riffs played over and over again, strummed as fast as possible and with just about no attention paid to what the riffs actually sound like. Of course, you wouldn't expect a band that's just found a plug-and-play formula for their music - complete with song titles and lyrics - to give a flying fuck about what notes they plug into it. The drums are repetitive, bland and low in the mix, so that you're unable to tell whether they're real or just a drum machine. Probably held a mic up to the speaker and recorded it from guitar pro. Bass doesn't exist here and the vocals are typical rasps, obviously a bonus that came with the formula they bought off Grendel of Blodulv.

Anyway, I've listened to the rest of their catalogue, and they don't improve, so don't worry about even trying this band. It's a waste of your time. There'll be a few reading this who think 'ooh, he's an el1t3st, I'll try it anyway' but even the trendies won't like this one. It's completely bereft of any semblance of musical credibility. Amputator really should have kept their music to themselves.

Artist: Amputator
Album Title: Amputator
Label: Regimental

This is a demo mCD from Amputator, an American band playing black metal.

The sound on this album is pretty robust, though the drums sound a bit lighter than they should. The guitar is nice and crunchy, right up front in the mix. The main vocals are grunted with a bit of echo, and are double-tracked from time to time. There's a death metal styled growl that comes up now and again, also.

In terms of songwriting, these guys remind me of early Darkthrone, with some thrash influence thrown in. This CD is short, being a demo, but the songs on display are plenty catchy and interesting. Since there are only five songs, I may as well review them individually.

"With Hate" starts out blasting and stays there. I like the vocal patterns on this one, as well as the varied cymbal hits.

"Nuclear Fucking Deathcult" is the heaviest song on the album, with a ripping main riff. Nice old-school feeling on this one.

"Mass Grave Contagion" is more atmospheric than the first two songs, with a bit of a Burzumish touch. The snarl-and-death-growl duet here is excellent.

"Gorefucked Blasphemy" sounds a bit done-before (I wanted to put on "Australian & Antichrist" the whole way through!) Very thrashy, based around a simple punky riff and aggressive vocals.

"Furnace Sacrament" is another atmospheric song. The closing section here is the best moment of the CD, with its vocal interplay and aggressive drumming... great sample to close things out, too!

This is a pretty good demo -- nothing groundbreaking, but I like the varied style, and the songwriting is solid. The mix of vocal styles is especially great. The only weakness of this one is its short length, and given the price, it's probably worth it regardless. Recommended.

Standout tracks: "Nuclear Fucking Deathcult", "Mass Grave Contagion", "Furnace Sacrament"

Review by Vorfeed: http://www.vorfeed.net