Artist: Cattle Decapitation
Label: Metal Blade Records
Release Date: 7/13/04
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Title: Humanure Artist: Cattle Decapitation Label: Metal Blade Records Release Date: 7/13/04 |
Judgment Committee Reviews | Rating |
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3 | ||
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3 | ||
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3 | ||
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Abyss's Review:
I've got to admit that its hard to pay attention to the music on this record when the cover shows a cow defecating a human face. I'm not sure if this gives us a little too much incite into the psyche's of the band members, and I have a feeling that there might be some scary things under the surface for them to have come up with a concept like this. What's really surprising isn't that someone came up with the concept, but the rest of the band apparently thought it was a good idea.
"One word review: Good." Anyway, on to the music. Cattle Decapitation play an ugly, underproduced breed of death metal, that can be complex at times and completely straightforward at others. The sound is pretty successful, if not all that unique, and it is probably not a bad purchase for those who like this stuff. Of course, the band's image, especially the artwork, distract from the music itself, and give the appearance of gimmick, not unlike bands like Regurgitate and Waco Jesus. The simple truth is I can only take a band like this as seriously as they allow me to, which in this case isn't much.
And whether you believe them to be a gimmicky band or not, the truth is that the cover artwork will do more towards making this album memorable than the music itself will. It is for this reason that I can't wholeheartedly stand behind this record, despite the fact that it is pretty solid in many aspects, but outstanding in none. For fans only. One word review: Good.
Death's Review:
I like Cattle Decapitation better in concept than I do in practice. Conceptually, Cattle Decapitation is a high-level, high art, vegan political statement, simultaneously commenting both on death metal and grindcore's obsession with graphic violence and on mankind's violent treatment of animals. Musically, however, the band is just another grindy death metal band. So many other acts do it better and with more technicality, originality and better songwriting. The Cattle Decapitation attraction is in the "veggie-gore" lyrics, the album titles, the t-shirts and the artwork. On that note, Humanure delivers, and certainly at a minimum meets my musical expectations. The songs are good, but not great. The death metal is fast and deliberate, but never is it groovy, catchy and/or transcendental.
"The songs are good, but not great." Thus, the new album has solidified my prior understanding of the band as set forth above. In sum, they end up with a middling score. Longtime fans will be pleased by the appearance of ex-members of the band such as Gabe Serbia of The Locust and original vocalist Scott Miller. I'll just be satisfied with the live show, the "100% Certified Organic" vocals, and the sicker than sick Wes Benscoter cover.
Hel's Review:
Cattle Decapitation is one of those bands that I know solely from having encountered them live on numerous occasions. Their sets are always performed with a great deal of humor, the singer has a lot of personality, though he does like to drop his drawers a bit too much for my taste. While I enjoy their live sets, I’ve never walked away saying to myself, “I have to get their album.”
"Humanure is an adequate death metal effort, that will satisfy an intense craving if you have one." Their brand of “vegan grindcore” is fun live, but now that I have sat and listened to Humanure several times, I cannot help but think that I’d rather see them play than listen to the album. The production causes the entire recording to sound muffled, and for whatever reason, while listening to the album is otherwise pleasant, the songs simply don’t stick in my head. The only track to make a real impression was “Men Before Swine (outro)” and that was a very bad one. So bad, I’m knocking a skull off just for wasting my time with it. Fine, you have to make a social commentary, but do you have to keep it droning on and on and on like that?
Humanure is an adequate death metal effort, that will satisfy an intense craving if you have one. However, if you are like me, you’ll be hungry again in just a couple of minutes, for while it is pleasant, it is not particularly fulfilling. I definitely have issues with the grindcore tag they seem to have received, I would certainly classify them more as straightforward death, as they have few of the quirks (like 10 second songs and controlled yet frenetic riffing) that I associate with the best bands in that genre. Give them a try if you like mid-paced death with a social commentary. If you are bored with death in general, you can probably wait to see them live. But definitely do go see them live, because they’re worth a chuckle and a few headbangs in that setting.
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