Saturday, March 26, 2011

TNM Review: How do you review a grindcore album? Rotten Sound - Cursed

When I'm out, I occasionally pick up issues of DecibelRevolver, Metal Hammer and the like. I always regret it real quick, but I do it mostly in part to the fact that I want to read something when I'm taking a dump, and don't want to scald my bare wang with a hot laptop bottom. Also because I sincerely feel that a time when the metal magazine artform will all but die out is fast approaching, and I must enjoy the printed medium while I can. Glossy color pages bound by staples, will inevitably be replaced by the digital media format of blogs, webpages, mobile sites and all that other magical internet fairy dust.

I often skip over the interviews and photo shoots of the blowhard mainstream acts that grace the front of the cover with their douchey, overrated, overbearing presence, and opt instead to skim the multiple small paragraphs dedicated to the metal underground strewn about each magazine's content. These quips are usually overpowered by advertisements double their size, but it's sometimes nice to see some not-so-talked-about groups getting their recognition somewhere in an otherwise mainstream publication. Sometimes. About 92% of the time, these groups are of the grindcore variety. Grindcore bands to me are the water buffalo in the Serengeti that is the hard music underground. They number as far as the eye can see, it's impossible to differentiate them between each other, and they're all stupid as hell.

Now I've spoken out against grindcore in the past, and like with every opinion I've ever shared, ever, I've caught my share of flak for it. There are people out there that love grindcore, and I've just never been one of them. Sorry. The biggest reason why is because I'm a fan of music. Sue me. I love the sporadic, heavy, vicious metal as much as the next bloke, but if there's one thing the genre of grindcore has taught me, it's that it is possible to make a sound that's too vicious, too sporadic, and too heavy. There comes a point when you're no longer creating music, you're just making a lot of stupid noise. You can take a sledgehammer to a litter of puppies and call it a song, (and I might buy your album for the novelty of it) but it doesn't change the fact that you're just producing the sound of senseless mayhem that's horrible to listen to. This sounds metal in theory, but in the end, it really just sucks.

Despite this fact, I look at these magazines and all these different websites writing thought-out, broken down, in depth reviews of grindcore albums. Some grindcore albums manage to get dazzling reviews with 5 out 5's and are complimented for their "punishing speed" and the ability to "make [you] want to smash faces through windows". Then there are others reviled for their "repetition" and "unimaginative" noise. Why? What makes one grindcore album a must-own masterpiece, and the other something worth dismissing? It's like they're digging through a dumpster, and they find a half-eaten Big Mac covered in maggots, and another one covered in bottle flies. Even if for whatever reason the food critics find the caramel accents of crunchy maggots superior to the sour aftertaste of fully developed flies, it doesn't change the fact that they're still eating garbage.

I may be a cruel man, but I'm fair. I am perfectly willing to experience first hand with an open mind what it's like to sit down, listen to a grindcore album, and give it a chance to offer me something that I can appreciate as a long time fan of heavy music. Due to its positive reviews and being commonly advertised on my site, I turned my attention to the album "Cursed" by Finnish grindcore band ,"Rotten Sound". Let's see if the grindcore genre has a rotten sandwich in its back-alley trash can that can appease this metalhead's musical palette... 



The grindcore formula is a simple concoction: scream, smash the drums, over-distort the low-tuned guitars and bass, play really fast, and do it all in a minute-long song. Rinse and repeat. At the beginning of Cursed, I immediately treat myself to an "I told you so" attitude, as Rotten Sound whips me up a painfully typical mix of instant grind brownies. The album starts with a 58 second opener, "Alone", (each song titled with only one word, as if to convey a single human emotion). I had no idea where the first song became the second, because the two tracks seem all but identical. I felt like I heard everything I needed to, in order to stop the album, get on my blog and tell everyone "this also sucks". Yet suddenly, I feel it happening. As Superior starts to approach its end, the senseless speed breaks and my head begins bobbing. Is this progression? Is this rhythm I'm hearing

While each song is undoubtedly fueled with your typical grindcore madness, and the overpowering fuzz of their distortion can start to gnaw away at the migraine center of your brain, I can't help but feel carried by some underlying groove from track to track. Each song transitions seamlessly to the next, in an unmistakable flow and change of pace that I thought this genre was all but void of. The blistering speed parts, while the mainstay of the album, don't often wear out their welcome, and nicely compliment the breakdowns that follow them, as well as the slower, heavier tracks.

Yes, there are breakdowns and plenty of them. They're not as open-stringed and painfully simple as what we've grown accustomed to, but a breakdown is a breakdown. At its best, Cursed is unmistakably a core album, and this is music made to mosh to. There were plenty of moments in this album where I felt like two-stepping and doing moshpit ninja moves in my living room. Be that as it may, Rotten Sound manages to borrow what little there is good about the hardcore genre, and it takes it to a much deeper, darker place. I feel like anything that's able to take the blood-pumping, hair-raising moments of a semi-respectable hardcore sound, and successfully break away from the "do your homework, take your vitamins" attitude of the hardcore scene should be appreciated. I would consider including deathcore with that statement, but deathcore takes the worst things about hardcore, and combines it with death metal. Although is there anything really good about the world of core? This album, oddly enough, might make me consider that possibility.

Cursed has its share of guitar solos, which I was pleasantly surprised to hear. However, they are incredibly short-lived, and typically fail to cut through the mix of fuzzy noise. This is more a production problem than anything, but it really hinders the quality of the album as a whole. Some unbridled, Finnish finger-flying would have definitely set this album apart from your typical grindcore fare, and the fact that you don't get a solid chance to enjoy any of it really disappointed me. Some of the slower-paced tracks such as Declare and Exploit all but convince me that I'm listening to a bona fide death metal album. While I can definitely appreciate that, and it got me headbanging with the best of them, it's nothing a genuine death metal band hasn't done before and better.

For someone like myself who typically despises the grindcore genre, Rotten Sound's "Cursed" pleasantly surprised me. While it's a long shot from my cup of tea, and I doubt I'll give it another listen anytime soon, I certainly found plenty of things to enjoy about it. If you're a grind n00b like myself, looking for something to ease yourself into those scalding hot grindcore waters, I would give this album a glowing recommendation. Although it's not perfect, Cursed is a good, solid hard music album with plenty of ups and downs to raise you up and knock you back on your ass. Perhaps this pompous metalhead should get over himself and consider dumpster diving once in a while? The caramel accents of Rotten Sound's maggots definitely proved that much to me.

24 comments:

  1. I for one love grindcore, its my second favorite genre. But i laughed because i agree with all your points about the genre! Its all true but regardless i still like their music. My favorite is Macabre! Keep up the good work!

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  2. Grind is good, and Rotten Sound happens to be an awesome band. I haven't listened to Cursed in full, but it sounded decent based on the samples I've heard. Same general sound that the band is known for. I don't see how you hate the guitar tone, I personally find the really thick and fat tone that Finnish grind, d-beat, and death metal bands are known for. Go check out other grindcore bands like Terrorizer and Insect Warfare because you would be missing out on some awesome music otherwise.

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  3. Grindcore is a lot more like Metal and Punk than Metal and Hardcore. While I like SOME grindcore bands, I'm not super into it. Needless to say though, I was surprised to see that you didn't trash it. I like your subtle beer reference at the end. I've had plenty of microbrews that are acceptable, and I'll finish the glass I paid for, it's just not something I'd buy again.

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  4. I felt the same about Unsilent Death by NAILS.

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  5. Fuck the Facts is the best grind band out there. Disgorge Mexico, Backstabber Etiquette and Stigmata High-Five are pure brilliance.

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  6. so you think the same about pig destroyer or nasum? or discordance axis? if it's as well just fast played noise to you, better give up listening to music and go play some badminton with your sister.

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  7. "Overdistorting the guitar sound" is a practice that pretty much began with Left Hand Path, Like An Everflowing Stream, Into The Grave, Slumber Of Sullen Eyes, and a whole pile of other amazing Scandinavian Death Metal records. It's not a phenomenon exclusive to grind. Additionally, there is just as much shit to wade through before you find the quality as with any other genre of music, including metal.

    Satire or no satire, I will agree that your assessment of grind is technically accurate, however it is also easy to dislike certain metal bands (Behemoth, Tsjuder, Massemord, Defeated Sanity, 1349, even Morbid Angel) or metal in general for the same "technically accurate" reasons.

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  8. Pan: To answer your first three questions: Yes, yes, and definitely yes. I'm not going to go play badminton, (I'd rather go play real music on my stereo) but I tell you what I will do. I'm going to buy a toy drumset for a 4-year-old with ADHD. When he starts screaming nonsense and smashing the drums with no sense of rhythm like a little, over-excited tard, I'm going to record it. I'm then going to call it "Horse Fucker", and you'll buy my album from me.

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  9. alot of people define music by their taste and preference which is actually not the definition of music. music is defined by rhythm, melody, and/or harmony. which alot of grindcore bands have in spades. whether or not the manner in which these three are executed pleases you is a completely different story. im tired of people defining music by their preference. remove head from ass then speak. or blog. or word vomit. or just gooooooooo fuck yourself! [;

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  10. and comparing dave witte's drumming to a 4 year old bashing a toy drumset shows how narrow minded and ignorant your preferences are. i lol'd real hard when i read that post.

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  11. My narrow-minded ignorant preference is for music that is good, as opposed to music that is bad. I'm sorry if it hurts your feelings that I'm not open-minded enough to enjoy things that I think blow total ass.

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  12. for music that is good? hah, really? what a revelation. im not arguing about preference. im stating a fact. well except for the dave witte thing. thats opinion obviously. but can't we continue this on the bigger stage of FB? dont be a pussy and delete me. haha, so not metal.

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  13. Grindcore is not good music, while it may by definition be music. Just like I think that rap isn't good music or hardcore or some other bullshit genre like industrial, techno, and indie punk emo shit. Some of it is fun to read lyrically but it sucks musically. Technically, the songs of silence that people "composed" are music, too, despite the fact that there is no instrument played and there is actually no sound. Who wants to listen to silence or just plain noise? Not me. I haven't heard a single grindcore song that has an intelligible, audible syllable not to mention a distinguishable chord. Music, by definition sure, but being music doesn't mean much of anything. Noise is and technically can be music just the same as the absence of sound, but that does not mean it is worth my time.

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  14. @tyranneuous douches maximus,

    i could pick apart that really really really stupid response but i much rather play my bass right now so maybe i'll reply later... but
    "Technically, the songs of silence that people "composed" are music, too, despite the fact that there is no instrument played and there is actually no sound. "

    wtf? that makes no sense. refer to definition of music plz

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  15. For any additional comments from me, please refer to the Facebook page, as you requested. Also, keep in mind that I wouldn't waste my time digging through the menus to delete you.

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  16. Sorry frostbittenanus. Here you go: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4%E2%80%B233%E2%80%B3
    That is what I was referring to retard.

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  17. @tyrana douche *although it is commonly perceived as "four minutes thirty-three seconds of silence"*

    hahahahahaha

    listening to a noise floor is not the same as listening to music. 'tard.

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  18. I don't really like Grindcore. I only like Carcass and I much prefer Heartwork and Swansong when it comes to them.

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  19. Grindcore sucks, as an artist. but it is awesome to incorporate grind parts into bands. Anyone agree?

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  20. I like Lord Gore. They were amazing, Grindcore with some Death Metal. And Cattle Decapitation too. But yeah, almost every Grindcore band is just shit noise.

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  21. You should try Nasum out if you enjoy rhythmic grind.

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  22. You all sound like the faggots who say that metal is just "screaming and noise".

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  23. What the fuck is wrong with you? One word: Repulsion.

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  24. "I love the sporadic, heavy, vicious metal as much as the next bloke, but if there's one thing the genre of grindcore has taught me, it's that it is possible to make a sound that's too vicious, too sporadic, and too heavy."

    What a pussy.

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All readers that post under the name "Anonymous" and are too frail and weak to represent themselves properly with a title, shall be deemed false metal poseurs for the remainder of their pitiful existence.