Artist: Impaled
Label: Necropolis
Release Date: 2/22/00
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Title: The Dead Shall Dead Remain Artist: Impaled Label: Necropolis Release Date: 2/22/00 |
Judgment Committee Reviews | Rating |
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Abyss's Review:
O.K. It's hard not to start this review without saying something about the cover, but I'll try anyway…. Fuck it, I always take the easy way out anyway. Now while nothing really offends me anymore (check that- except for the fact that CBS's "Touched By an Angel" frequently ranks in the top ten in the Nielsen Ratings) I do question what possesses someone to put a toilet full of entrails on the cover of an album that they've labored on for so long. Possibly it's to gain attention through negative reaction, but if you want to be controversial, why don't you just put a naked woman on the cover (Hell it's a lot more fun to look at!)? Anyway, I guess that I'm just getting to the age where the thought of something going medically wrong for me on the toilet is scarier than it is funny. But I digress…
"This album is heavily inspired by Carcass, and that is okey-doeky artichokey with me." Impaled have put together an album that can stand on its own. I think that they'd admit that this album is heavily inspired by Carcass, and that is okey-dokey artichokey with me. I've always been a huge Carcass fan, and Impaled, while definitely their own band, have captured their spirit quite effectively. Now while there are many bands that have borrowed from Carcass, I like the fact that Impaled seems to be equally influenced by both eras of Carcass. Not only is the obvious grind inspired Symphonies era in the fold, but the tech inspired, layered thickness of Heartwork is also present. This leaves us with what, I think, all metal heads crave… well crafted, head banging songs, that are aggressive as Hell.
This band's biggest asset is their use of different tempos, and their ability to utilize, but not overuse, every riff. No riff outstays its welcome in the ears of the listener, due to pace changes and the ability to expand on the riff at its base. It is in these slower moments where the band shines, and then when they return to their blistering pace again, they don't miss a step in the transition. A quality, well-crafted death release that I think owes more to grind than gore.
"Well crafted, head banging songs, that are aggressive as Hell."
Death's Review:
Truth be told, I’m not that into gore. I was never into splatter movies, didn’t have Fangoria Magazine pullouts all over my wall as a kid, never obsessed over the "Faces of Death" series, etc. You get the idea. While I recognize the shock value of it all, I, for one, can think of an extraordinarily long list of subject matter I’d rather see depicted on an album cover than the intersection of human entrails and bowel movements. Call me crazy, but that’s just the kind of guy I am.
Even more disturbing than the band’s choice of imagery, however, is Necropolis’ marketing emphasis. Impaled’s press sheet contains a bullet-point recitation of the album’s key marketing angles, the second one from the top of which screams something to the effect of "shocking cover art sure to increase album sales!" Is this what metal has been reduced to? Who’s got the most disgusting album cover? Whatever happened to actually listening to the music?
"Aaaaaarrrrrrgggghhhh!!!!! Very cool stuff." To dwell on the album cover more would be to disregard my own criticism: enough about the image, what about the music? Well, to start with, it’s very, very good. Killer death/gore/grind a la Kreator via Carcass mixed with (gasp!) elements of Slayer. Similar covers like Exhumed’s (by the way, I’m told Impaled has lineup connections to Exhumed) Gore Metal and Carcass’ Symphonies of Sickness translate into obvious similarities in Impaled’s sound as well. But Impaled stands tall primarily because of some seriously heavy (and seriously slow) big-assed riffs buried within the grind and the speed.
My favorite tracks are "Trocar" and "Immaculate Defecation," both of which have really cool slower riffs. In "Trocar," check out the one that begins at 1:33, but more importantly, the riff that begins at 2:38, or the best on the album, which begins at 4:22. Aaaaaarrrrrrgggghhhh!!!!! Very cool stuff. In "Immaculate Defecation," check out 1:25 (under the solo) or the one right before it, or the outro riff, or... well, the whole song really. This is inspired and crushing music. For a faster riff try the brief rock-ride stomp which leads into the even briefer splash cymbal at 2:24 of "Fecal Rites." Cool, regardless of the fact I’m talking about songs called "fecal" this and "defecation" that, I’m sure you’ll agree.
"Cool, regardless of the fact I'm talking about songs called "fecal" this and "defecation" that, I'm sure you'll agree." So ignore the stupidity. Or embrace it, if that’s what you’re in it for. But don’t miss out on the riffs ‘cause you’re too busy looking at album covers. This is a high-calibur metal album. And if you like death/grind of any form, you’ll be a bit upset with yourself later on if you don’t jump on this bandwagon early.
Hel's Review:
The first thing that strikes you about The Dead Shall Dead Remain is actually two-fold. For me, it’s impossible to separate out two distinct moments in which I beheld the album cover and the title. They're firmly melded in my mind because of the mutual incongruity. The album title is difficult to repeat verbatim without a little memorization and the cover, well, that’s not something you’ll see often. Horror movie "special effects" - the likes of which I have not seen used so liberally on an album cover since Exhumed’s Gore Metal. ‘Nuff said.
The music Impaled performs isn’t your standard, everyday metal. Frequent, fast, and occasionally unusual, time changes are what make this band distinct from their death metal peers world over. This is one of those bands that combines 3 or 4 simple songs into one epic of shifting moods and signatures. Let there be no question that the musicianship is fantastic all around. This band makes music that is more intelligently played than their album cover might have you believe.
"Frequent, fast, and occasionally unusual." An additional touch that enhances this record is the occasional canned dialogue. One of my favorite bits is at the beginning of "Back to the Grave." The woman sounds like a black and white movie starlet. Like Lana Turner or something. I think these snippets add even more character and depth to the album. And if there’s one thing this disc’s got, that’s character. Browsing through the lyrics are like walking through a mass-murderer-psycho dream. The overdubs soften the images and show that they are meant with a measure of humor - the very same sense of humor that finds B horror movies delightfully funny.
This is a great all around heavy metal album. You have to be amenable to the growly regurgitated vocal style, but if you are, you should be all set. All in all, I can’t really find anything to take issue with on this one. I think Impaled is a band that has a bright future in front of them. So if you were just thinking to yourself, "I need a good all around brutal metal album by a talented, basically unknown band", then hey, I just made your day!
"Browsing through the lyrics are like walking through a mass-murderer-psycho dream."
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