ACCURSED SPAWN "The Virulent Host"




ACCURSED SPAWN "The Virulent Host"

If "The Virulent Host" had been released around 1992, I have no doubt that we would be considering Accursed Spawn one of the premier death metal acts from Canada...or anywhere, for that matter. But this is 2019, the age of unlimited bands being dropped over the internet every single day for free and it is just not possible to break through in the same way as those glorious days of old. Hell, even in 2009, this would not be so diffused as now with literally hundreds of other bands.

That's a shame because this is vicious American style death metal in the classic manner that takes no prisoners. It can most definitely stand with the likes of Cannibal Corpse, Suffocation and, perhaps most especially, Malevolent Creation. Everything those bands possess, Accursed Spawn does as well. That's immediately clear upon hearing "Bhopal '84", which will singe the pubes right off your privates with scorching intensity. These guys know how to do the style right. And it's not a one song fluke, either, because "Bloodforged" and "Interrogated Bludgeonment" are even better. The riffing is excellent, with clear thrash undertones, and the production is clean and brutal. There's a technical edge to Accursed Spawn's attack but not to the point of stuff like Necrophagist or Obscura. You can hear it in "Cesium 187" for sure. But they really just want to blow your head off.

As the album goes on, things do kind of flatten out and become a bit samey. Well, that's a problem that every band in the style has, even the giants like Cannibal and Malevolent. I would say this is better than the lower level releases of those celebrated bands. Great guitar soloing here, too, especially on the title track. And the lyrics seem to be half way intelligent and focused on the moral outrages that make modern life an absurdity.

This should be in the collection of all who like the bands I mentioned earlier. It's so sad that it will get swamped in the bottomless morass of releases we get bombarded with today.


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