Reviews list for Brutality - Screams of Anguish (1993)

Brutality were unknown to me prior to listening to this (surprise, surprise), but are another product of the Nineties' Florida death metal scene that spawned so many DM classics and one listen to Screams of Anguish and it is obvious that it originated in Tampa. While it does possess the brutality of the classic Tampa sound, it also has a slight technical bent to it that, presumably, differentiated it from the Morbid Angels and Deicides of the time. It isn't excessively technical and Brutality are as capable of being wilfully bludgeoning as any other of Tampa's death metal denizens, but there is enough there to set it apart. The lead work in particular is something that caught my ear, with the howling solos being one of my favourite aspects of the album as their scalpel-like sharpness provides a perfect counterpoint to the blunt force trauma of the bludgeoning rhythm work. Vocalist Scott Reigel has a classic death metal style of ascerbic growling that sounds like it could strip paint and the rhythm section provides the perfect heavy-boned skeleton on which guitarists Don Gates and Jay Fernandez can hang their muscular riffs.

One point of contention for me was the two interludes, Sympathy and Spirit World, which I think sucked the velocity out of the album. During each of these breaks in the sonic battery I was champing at the bit for them to launch back into the attack and felt these acted like speed bumps on a racetrack, being superfluous and disruptive of the flow. I understand the inclusion and maybe the band wanted to give the listener a respite and a chance to regroup before setting about them once more, but without them in the tracklisting I think we would have had a perfect blistering and belligerent sub-forty minute album.

Anyway, minor tracklisting niggle aside, this is an album I enjoyed massively with it sitting somewhere between early Deicide and mid-era Death to my ears with those searing solos being the big take away for me. On the strength of this debut, I really can't believe that these guys aren't as big a name in the Florida scene as Death, Deicide or Morbid Angel.

Whenever the topic of discussion is underrated bands or overlooked classics in Death Metal, Brutality is one of the first names I bring up.

However, it is not their acclaimed debut Screams of Anguish but its successor When the Sky Turns Black that has long received my adoration. In my mind, the sophomore album stands out from the crowd with its slightly unhinged vocals, alien guitar solo squeals, and a hint of Black Metal/Euro-scene influence with its inspired use of tremolo riffing and eerie interludes. While such ingredients can also be found on Screams of Anguish, they are still coagulating. Here, Brutality stand a little bit closer in line with their contemporaries in the early US scene.

This album is the more technical and "brutal" of the two albums, which will suit many listeners, but coming to it after years of loving the aforementioned qualities of When the Sky Turns Black, it does struggle to capture me in the same way in terms of songwriting and overall ambiance.  That's not to say there aren't great moments. The opener "These Walls Shall Be Your Grave" is my pick of the bunch, setting the album forward with a head full of steam. The momentum created by the quickly-churning riffs in the second half of the song remind me strongly of my favorite Brutality song, "When the Sky Turns Black". In the second half of the album, the trio of tracks from "Exposed to the Elements" to "Cryptorium" also stands out as very strong. I found myself headbanging to each. Songs such as these contain a clear imprint of the Brutality identity I loved on When the Sky Turns Black -- their fluid interchanging of riffs, and wailing solos. Those particular aspects, it seems, are something the band has always performed remarkably well.

Without doubt, this is old-school Floridian Death Metal done at a very high level. If you are a fan of early Death, early Morbid Angel and the like or if you are just now getting into that sound, Screams of Anguish is certainly a worthy listen and might just become a favorite. However, if you grew up listening to those bands, checking this release out years later may not necessarily amaze you or bring anything new to the table. If that is the case, I would encourage you to also check out When the Sky Turns Black, for a version of Brutality that, a year later, is a little more refined.

7/10

Favorite track: "These Walls Shall Be Your Grave"