Monstrosity - Screams from Beneath the Surface

It’s crazy how sometime bands, even those who are legendary in their scene, can have such long careers and still go unnoticed to some people.  Well, in this case, a person.  Me.  Sorry.  I’ve been listening to metal for over 25 years and yet “Screams from Beneath the Surface,” is the first Monstrosity album I’ve heard.  Of course, I have been aware of the band forever but, still, this is the first time ever jamming with them.  Goddamn, what a poser, right?

Anyway, this album is the band’s seventh full-length album since forming in 1990.  Hey, I was only seven in 1990 so my apologies for not buying their first demos back then.   Their early days and first two full-lengths featured Corpsegrinder on vocals and that’s cool and stuff but life moves on and so did the band.  

With that being said, this is apparently the band’s first effort with vocalist Ed Webb (ex-Massacre, Generichrist, among several others) but considering this is my first album, I don’t really have a basis to compare so I’ll just say he kicks a lot off ass and is cool like snakes.   He also growls and screams like a demon across the album’s 10 song, 43-minute runtime.  I find his vocals quite good, a nice even tone that sounds brutal but still intelligible. 

But what’s a vocalist without a good band?  Doesn’t matter because Monstrosity have honed their skills over decades and, judging by this album, they show no sign of slowing down. It helps that two original members are still present:  Bassist Mark van Erp and drummer Lee Harrison.  To say their performance across the album is both destructive and tight would be an understatement.   Matt Barnes, who has been with the band since 2010, is quite the shredder when he needs to be but is also surprisingly sharp and melodic—honestly, no offense to the others, but he is the MVP on this album.  He just kills.  Period.

“Banished to the Skies,” opens with more atmospheric textures than I expected but I’m not complaining.  About 30 seconds in, a soaring guitar solo arises then ridiculously awesome bass joins in with the drums.  This song builds up by layers—clever and makes everything even more satisfying when the vocals join in at the 1:10 mark.  The guitars and bass ride the line of heavy and melody. Catchy death metal?  Yes, please.  The halfway mark of the song is ultra-brutal and, if you’re young, will scare your parents.  If you’re old like me, it will just scare your children.  Another great solo arrives later before the song reaches insane levels of deathly goodness.

You know what, maybe the bass is the MVP on the album?   “The Atrophied” definitely makes a good case for the argument.  This is another banger that is catchier than it has a right to be and the band is at their best when they sync up in rhythm and just jam this stuff out like there isn’t a tomorrow.  The riffs get a little more intricate and detailed after the halfway mark, the song racing for new highs and successfully scaling them before it turns into a speedy whiplash that will cause, uh, whiplash. 

“Vampors,” is one of the more insane, bludgeoning songs on the album.  If someone asked me what death metal was, I think this song would suffice in answering that question.  This has everything:  brutal double bass, lead heavy bass, sick riffs, and a vocalist who has endless energy.  

On the opposite end of the spectrum, we have “Thorns.” This song begins with a heavy dose of melodies, even as the drums push the brutal aspects.  This one is more of a mid-pace romp in the beginning but that’s good because it lets the riffs breathe while setting the song up for its more violent mid-section.  

The final song, “Veil of Disillusion,” is a total fiery forest of fire and flames of fire.  The blistering solos and drums offer no moments to breathe on this final run of ear stabbings.  The groove is killer and latches on quickly—this isn’t a song you can press play on and just walk away.  You’ll want to walk through a wall and punch someone first.  The mid-section with its slower, more choppy riffs is fantastically insane and the guitars growing groovier and more detailed as the song barrels towards its end is HUGE. 

Monstrosity’s “Screams from Beneath the Surface,” shows the originals in the scene still have more to say (growl) and can take the younger generation to school.  This album won’t win any awards for being overly original or filled with boundless variety, but what it does (aka playing death metal) it does well.   

Rating: Great