The first name that comes to anyone’s mind when discussing old school death metal is undoubtedly Cannibal Corpse. Others will think of Death, Morbid Angel, Suffocation, Cryptopsy (duh!), Incantation, the scene in the early nineties featured so much talent that some of them never quite got all the love they deserved. California’s Autopsy is one of these acts. Legendary without being iconic, they’ve been providing a very pure brand of brutality for over three decades.
Autopsy kicked our collective asses and made us remember the name last year with their first full length release since 2015 Morbidity Triumphant, but the elder statesmen of death metal didn’t bask in the glow of their glorious return for long. They have a new record out called Ashes, Organs, Blood & Crypts and it’s as fun and intense as its predecessor, although its also quite different.
The opener Rabid Funeral sets the tone for what you’re about to hear. Ashes, Organs, Blood & Crypts is a throwback to the very specific era where death metal wasn’t self-aware yet. Oldheads know what I’m talking about. The mid to late eighties era where death metal sounded like very angry and grim thrash metal. Raspy gurgled vocals, skank beats, guitars tuned more or less standardly, etc. Rabid Funeral sounds like well-recorded Possessed or early Cannibal Corpse. It has a complexity bands didn’t feature then, notably a memorable mid-tempo guitar solo that closes out the song accompanied by otherworldly rasps that really anchor the thematic identity of the record. We’re caught in a fucking crypt and our chances of survival aren’t great.
Throatsaw is a shorter, simpler song that cranks up the level of intensity of Ashes, Organs, Blood & Crypts . The vocal performance and the seesaw-like guitars really give the song a particular color and texture that you don’t find all that much in contemporary death metal. It’s gritty, sloppy in a calculated way. It sounds raw and dangerous. No Mortal Left Alive is more of a groovy delicacy with death doom elements. It’s carried by this fun, chuggy guitar riff and predatory tempo that heightens the monstrous atmosphere. Tone and texture are quite crucial to the uniqueness of Autopsy’s sound and it’s once again crafted with a great attention to detail on this new record. It’s supposed to feel drippy and dirty and fun at the same time and it does.
Wall of Entrails starts with a very dramatic mid-tempo wall of shredding guitars before kicking into a simple, atmospheric riff. It’s carried by an immense, shrieky vocal performance that oozes with anger and violence and fun, high flying solos that seem to crank up the intensity with every note played. It’s the longest song on the record at 5:06, but it’s so theatrical and well-constructed that it barely breezes by. The title song features these powerful, commanding drums in the intro before kicking into another of these death/thrash songs filled with guitar leads and shrieky, pissed off vocals. To be fair, it kind of blends with the other songs on the record except maybe for the super simple, ghastly guitar outro that shifts the mood again. Death metal bands are so obsessed with technicality, I can appreciate when one of them dials it down for the sake of atmosphere and creative vision.
The following song Bones To The Wolves is another number that plays skillfully with death doom elements without ever committing to the aesthetic. The vocals have this bellows, almost punk quality to them, which nicely layered with a shitload of shredding and intercut with these slow, dramatic riffs. It’s fun in a shambolic way. It doesn’t have a spine to speak of and goes in many directions in four minutes, but its energy is infectious. Marrow Fiend has this similar, fragmented quality but it stands out with its lower, nastier vocals. I never could tell whether it’s Chris Reifert or Eric Cutler singing, but whoever led on this one did a solid job. Once again I loved the slower elements where the song could really sit and establish a proper atmosphere.
Toxic Death Fuk is another one of these crossover-ish numbers with infectious, bouncy riffs. I loved the coughing fit right before the one minute mark. Not sure if it was planned or just happened in the studio, but it felt on topic. It reminded me of Darkthrone’s newer, crust punk influenced music. Simple, chuggy and fun. Lobotomizing Gods is an even shorter song, but it couldn’t be any more different. It has this slow-fast-slow dynamics that is all over Ashes, Organs, Blood & Crypts. Not going to lie, it gets excruciating after a while. Autopsy leans into an interesting atmosphere and goes completely into another direction and comes back to it. It would be cool if it was only for one song, but most songs on the record do this. Some of the songs seem constructed this way for the sake of it.
Death Is The Answer breaks the mold with a fast-slow-fast construction that feels more like a conventional death metal song. It reminded me of peak era Morbid Angel, when they were not afraid to slow things down and make it murky. Autopsy are at their best on this record when they sound mucky and organic. The closer Coagulation features some of the more odd and fun guitar tones on Ashes, Organs, Blood & Crypts. There’s an earthy, muddy charm to it even when it ramps up. It’s one of the most seamless, best written songs on there in my opinion. It’s one of their simplest compositions, but it’s really carried by passionate, almost possessed interpretations.
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Ashes, Organs, Blood & Crypts is a solid, albeit very particular kind of record. It’s a throwback to the era where death metal came together and laced its thrash metal roots into a more atmospheric and muscular approach. It suffers from creative ADHD at times, but the sheer passion and power propels the music through every possible roadblock. Autopsy are old, but they are as fun and energetic as they’ve ever been and hopefully they’ll keep wrecking our eardrums for a few more years.
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If you like what Ben does and want to hear him talk about books and movies too, follow his site Dead End Follies on Instagram.
