Deicide
's first album for
Earache
is a short (about 27 minutes) blast of old-fashioned
death metal
. Cleanly produced by
Neil Kernon
(
Cannibal Corpse
,
Queensryche
), the band sounds appropriately brutal with synchronized dual-guitar shredding by
Eric Hoffman
and
Brian Hoffman
(who also manage about 17 solos between the two of them), metronomic drumming by
Steve Asheim
, and
Glen Benton
's bass guitar and deep growl (sometimes double-tracked with higher-pitched vocals). In case there was any doubt that the group's religious views have mellowed, there's a song on this album called
"Fuck Your God."
The title reflects both the level of their rage and the depth of their lyrics; they mostly just spew vitriol at the same general target they've been attacking for over a decade (sample lyric from
"Mad at God,"
which is a different song: "The light of God has turned to sh*t"). For what it's worth, they still seem to take their religion shtick seriously. Depending on your perspective, that makes them sincere, offensive, provocative, simpleminded, unintentionally humorous, or good showmen. ~ Todd Kristel