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MONSTROSITY “Screams from Beneath the Surface”
MONSTROSITY “Screams from Beneath the Surface”
By Thor
MONSTROSITY has always been an exemplary death metal band. Musically, they were at the pinnacle of the early Florida scene. Unfortunately, their early work was overshadowed by the fact that they were the band from which the more recognizable CANNIBAL CORPSE poached vocalist George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher.
It wasn’t until their third full-length album, 1999’s “In Dark Purity”—a death metal masterpiece, that MONSTROSITY finally shed that association and commenced crushing the first half of the aughts. Unfortunately, this lineup only lasted one more studio album—the outstanding “Rise to Power” (2003), before the band began incessantly replacing members like so many of these bands do over time.
I had the opportunity to review the band’s last comeback album, 2018’s “The Passage of Existence” and it ended up being one of my favorite albums that year. But MONSTROSITY once again disappeared. Years passed by. I grew old and cynical. Then, last month…to my demented delight…Metal Blade came a’ knockin’ on my inbox with “Screams from Beneath the Surface”, the band’s first album in eight years!
It features original bassist Mark van Erp, and new vocalist Ed Webb (HIDEOUS). The guitars are handled once again by 15-year MONSTROSITY vet Matt Barnes, and, as always, band leader Lee Harrison mans the kit.
Let’s start with what works. Sonically, this album is remarkable. That will come as no surprise considering the recording process was an all-star collaboration between Audiohammer Studios’ Jason Suecof (THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, DEICIDE, JOB FOR A COWBOY), and the mythic Morrisound Studios where MONSTROSITY reunited with producer/deity Jim Morris, alongside Mark Prator and BJ Ramone. The guitars actually sound like…guitars…which is sort of an anomaly these days. And the bottom end is liable to cause some involuntary pants pooping. It’s huge!
However…
The songwriting is massively underwhelming. The album is entirely composed of unremarkable, mid-tempo and semi-melodic material. It’s boring, unaggressive death metal from a band that had been known to write anything but. The blistering, technical, and ferocious MONSTROSITY of yesteryear is nowhere to be found. There’s nothing here that would compel a second listen.
Barnes’ guitar leads are fantastic, as is van Erp’s bass playing. But besides that, “Screams from Beneath the Surface” sounds like middle-aged MONSTROSITY. I’m there, too, but I’m not the one phoning in a much-anticipated album.
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