I spend a lot of my time reflecting on music. Whether that be battling with myself about checking out new genres or embracing nostalgia or even the future I’m always on a journey. I think that is the sad part about being a musical obsessive. Often though I just like to sit back and enjoy something that isn’t going to really get me thinking, something that is so back to basics for my taste that it’s nothing but a pleasure. That’s where Korpse come in.

This band totally get the vibe that made me fall in love with Brutal Death. The overly gruesome, the violent, the knuckle dragging delivery and somewhat gangster swagger, I love it. From the Netherlands and having formed in 2013 their debut dropped with some acclaim. However, it was 2016’s Unethical that really made me take a closer look at them. Now in 2021 the band find themselves on Unique Leader Records, which stuck me as odd as I normally associate this label with Tech. The third album is called Insufferable Violence, one look at that totally putrid artwork was enough for me to know that I had to get this in my ears.

Classic, the opening to this album drags me back screaming to 09. Cheeky samples are dotted throughout followed by complete caveman Slam barbarity. I must say that I do feel the song suffers for the lack of vocals but regardless it’s a crushing opening and better than some lengthy spoken word tosh. The following title track gives us those much-needed vocals, guttural as a clogged up toilet my Brutal Death ears are sufficiently pleased. Irrepressibly fast paced, heavy and barbaric but still totally juvenile, this is how I like my Slam. The sound is super back to basics in Disposable Underaged Objects, big Slams, like really big and killer guitar licks, if you don’t like wandering around circle pits in a zombie fashion then you’re going to hate this. Personally, I love it and I’m glad to see the themes carried through into Self Preservation and A Final Lesson, this is proper Slam.

Honestly the second portion of the album isn’t any more musically challenging. Imagine slowly decaying whilst sitting on your sofa, you brain turning to a thick slurry. That’s the effect of Genocidal Bloodbath, such beautifully stripped back BDM that it’ll make you wonder why anyone ever bothers to try and advance the genre in any way. Callousness brings the pinch harmonic game to life and continues the face scrunching Slams, certainly one of the highlights on the album for sure. Honestly though the album is very stripped back, a lot of songs blur together and create a lengthy Slamming composition, but this is something I’ve always personally enjoyed and it’s actually refreshing to hear a band do it in 2021. The final two track Molestation Condonation and Epochs Of Melancholy round things off nicely and simply add to the bursting hammer weight of Korpse. The latter being another instrumental much like the albums opening. This song however brings in melodic influence, it’s not out of place at all and it kind of fills of the vocal void.

All in all this album is simple. There’s nothing that’s actually new, nothing that is innovative or even musically mind blowing (except of course for the fact that I couldn’t play any of the music within because I have no musical talent, hence the reviewing). Is that a bad thing though? I don’t think so, you could call it generic sure but then can something be generic when it references an older sound but is brought anew? I honestly can say I haven’t heard a Slam album this classic in tone in a long time. From a long time cap wearing, jogging bottoms Slam loon this is the cream of the crop. Honestly if the BDM genre had never evolved from this style I don’t think I’d be into as many subgenres as I am, I’d be pretty content with this level for all time.

(9/10 George Caley)

https://www.facebook.com/korpseSBDM

https://uniqueleaderrecords.bandcamp.com/album/insufferable-violence