TROGLODYTE – “The Hierarchical Ecological Succession: Welcome to the Food Chain”

By Thor

Missouri bigfoot-themed death metal unit TROGLODYTE (did I really just type that?) returns with their fourth full-length album, “The Hierarchical Ecological Succession: Welcome to the Food Chain.”

This is my first ‘squatchy taste of these guys and as much as it seems like I should have been more annoyed by the whole thing, this album and its unapologetically silly bigfoot motif actually grew on me, track by track. That’s because at its core, the band is a pretty bare-bones death metal outfit, typified by lots of midtempo material—though not without a fair number of blasts—as well as guttural yet articulate vocals via multiple band members. The guitars are thick and dirty and occasionally hint at the type of heavy grooves not typically associated with death metal, but rather PANTERA, LAMB OF GOD, et al.

The album features songs with titles such as “What’s Eating You?,” “Found Guilty in a Wrongful Death Lawsuit for Shooting a Man Wearing a Bigfoot Costume,” and “Assault by Cleft Foot Malformation Trampled Under (Big)Foot.” In addition to the rest of the album, these theme-forward songs are held together by a throughline of various samples and interludes, the overall effect of which is a pretty engaging and really heavy listening experience.

While I’m not convinced that it will have a long shelf life in my rotation, TROGLODYTE’s “The Hierarchical Ecological Succession: Welcome to the Food Chain” is a solid death metal offering in the mold of bands like SKINLESS, JUNGLE ROT, and SIX FEET UNDER.

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