Track Listing:
1. Only Taste For Decay
2. Battered To The Grave
3. Crowned In Entrails
4. Dismember The Transgender
5. Under The Patio
6. From Crotch To Crown
7. Glorify Through Cyanide
8. Set Forth To Annihilate
9. Compulsive Beheading Disorder
10. Reduced To Stumps
In case the track listing and gruesome album artwork above haven't already given it away; Prostitute Disfigurement is a Brutal Death Metal band. That means it's sphincter-ripping-ly heavy, remorseless in every way, and has lyrical content so sickening it'd even make Jason Voorhees heave uncontrollably, never mind upset Tipper Gore. When considering these reasons alone, it's understandable that Brutal Death Metal really is an acquired musical taste, and is unlikely to be able to rise too much from the underground scene. Even the band name Prostitute Disfigurement should bring forth the expression "Oh, for fuck sake!". This counts for the music as well; believe me, this album is not for the uninitiated! If you're a fourteen year-old that's just discovered Bullet For My Valentine, I'd give it a while before you listen to this.
Fortunately, for those of us who like our Metal with its guts on show and like an immoral autopsy, this album is a strong piece of work. The sounds is very much what you'd expect; grisly, grinding guitars with frantic, sometimes atonal leads thrown in for good measure. Michiel van der Plicht's drums are constant and skilled, but overall are fairly standard for the genre. The vocal delivery of Niels Adams is a strength of this band; the desired gutturals are present, but the lyrics are not completely unintelligible as you would assume them to be. There's oftentimes a snarled scream thrown in amongst the throaty growls.
While things start off with a satisfying barrage of wanton aural decimation, it's when 'Crowned In Entrails' comes in that things really start shining; it's a gloriously frantic and yet catchy show of strength that is then surpassed by 'Dismember The Transgender' which, while also chaotic, features a tighter structure and some memorable riffs. There's also a series of steadily-building leads that are backed up by a great, distinctive bass lick or two. 'Under The Patio' has a good start with a trading off between vocals and guitars before it goes right back in to the familiar brutal territory. The chorus section is one of the more memorable, with the band showing that it knows how to slow down, albeit only slightly.
Right through the whole album, the music is as precise as a Steve Vai guitar solo; clearly very well executed, but there's a bit of a lack of original flavour that keep the album from sounding exceptional. It is true that there's not a whole lot can be done in the Brutal Death Metal genre at this point in time, and it is a matter of being faster, sicker and heavier than the previous band. In this, Prostitute Disfigurement have staked a an impressive claim. Take the lyrics from the aforementioned 'Crowned In Entrails'; "Her bluish lifeless body for several hours penetrated, Carved up from anus to chin.". That's about as brutal as it will ever get, and for all those who want to hear tongue-in-cheek themes of murder, rape, and all the weird and wonderful ways of disassembling the human bodies, this album is as recommendable as any.
Five albums in, and these Dutch purveyors of sickening sounds are a solid unit, if this album is anything to go by. The only thing I could pick at is the fact that things pretty much sound the same on each song, to the point that it's hard to pick out individual properties for each track, but that's to be expected in this genre. On saying that though; those who want to throw subtlety out of the window, bang their heads to the point that whiplash is induced, and absolutely ruin their throats singing along to only the most pulverising music on the planet, 'From Crotch To Crown' should slake their thirsts for a while.
Rating: 7/10
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