NB: contains descriptions likely to cause offence. Keep repeating, “it’s only a review, it’s only a review!”
It probably comes as no surprise to anyone that having previously tackled Zombie Flesh Eaters and City Of The Living Dead, Fulci would turn to namesake Lucio’s most unruly bastard child for inspiration at some point. Not only is 1982 film The New York Ripper his most contentious, depraved and sordid film but it is also the sickest Giallo to come out of the golden era of Italian exploitation films. The only other that comes close in mood and tone is Mario Landi’s 1979 entry Giallo a Venezia which may have been a challenge to beat on all levels of excess for Lucio. With its superior gore FX and competent visual eye for realism the film was deemed so repugnant that on first arriving in the UK it was effectively banned outright and prints unceremoniously deported out the country. Over 45 years after it was made it still proves problematic and although available here for home viewing has 29 seconds of reaction scenes placed over its most overzealous scenes of butchery. Naturally that means nothing when anyone can happily pick it up uncut and even in 4K UHD format from Blue Underground in the USA.
Fulci, the Italian band stick largely to the script as they hack and slash their way through 14 numbers in around 33-minutes. I knew that they were obviously going to sample the coroner’s infamous quote in description of a victim laid out on his autopsy table and it’s the first thing we hear on the album. Essentially brutal death metal is the name of the musical game here with churning riffs, pumped up battering drums and Fiore Stravino’s gurgling vocals relaying the sadistic story. As shown on past releases however there are a few deviations along the way such as a moody and atmospheric passage of synthwave courtesy of TV-CRIMES on ‘A Blade In The Dark’ You will no doubt appreciate that respite too as the likes of ‘Fucked with a Broken Bottle’ show nothing in the way of mercy and probably would not go down well if the title were used as a t-shirt print. The fact they released it as a single is nothing short of preposterous and shows a complete disregard for causing offence; no fuck’s given here. There’ dollops of groove on numbers such as ‘Maniac Unleashed’ along with some cheeky Slayer etched melody adding some thrash. ‘Knife’ is the album’s biggest surprise though with Lord Goat aka Goretex of Ill Phixion providing some hip-hop vocals which will go down well with fans of Ill Bill, Necro and the like.
Flailing razor-wire riffs squeal out of ‘Slashereality’ and the title track is suitably quackers complete with some pig squeal vocals. Don’t worry I am not leaving any spoilers for anyone who hasn’t seen the film and is mad enough to tackle it after reading this but there is no denying that the band have nailed down a suitably grizzly performance here. I can only wonder what Lucio and original score artist Francesco De Masi would have thought of it all and have not yet played it over the film’s visuals (which would have to be repeated three times) but reckon it would all fit together quite nastily. Watch out for the slams of ‘Sadistic Murder’ and the sickening lurches of ‘Stabbed, Gutted and Loved’ and unlike most of the cast of the film, you might just make it to the end and moody sax driven noir instrumental ‘Il Miele Del Diavolo’. (Is that a clue to next album being based on ‘The Devil’s Honey)? What’s left to say apart from the obvious? “Good, efficient butchery”
(8/10 Pete Woods)
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