Cannibal Corpse - Tomb of the Mutilated (1992) Reviews
As CC releases go, Tomb of the Mutilated sits somewhere just ahead of the first two records they released for me as it was my first experience of the band overall. I had not bothered with them until well after their heyday (well, with the amount of records they shift still you could argue that they still are in their heyday, I suppose), neglecting even to have any interest in the Ace Ventura appearance that everybody went fucking nuts over for some reason. As such I came to them late and long after any shock value that would make any impact on my increasingly desensitised brain. I have always felt that TotM is one of their finest efforts in all honesty. Latter day highlights such as Kill seem to get praise alongside their first two records also. However, coming to the record with nothing else to compare it to left me with a positive impression that lasts long beyond any pure nostaligic sentiment.
Whilst not the most varied or indeed inventive death metal album; and withstanding the fact that some performances (ahem, the drumming, ahem) leave a bit to be desired, TotM is still a very consistent record that forges ahead without having much need to be tipping the death metal kitbag upside down to get absolutely everything included. It is almost best described as being chewing gum for the ears, and whilst it is not background music like any release for Amon Amarth consistently qualifies to be for me, it does not require an enormous amount of effort to enjoy. As such, it is one of the most immediate death metal albums on my CD shelves.
Those mining riffs and monstrous vocals combine to swarm the listener, yet at the same time there is space allowed for breath in some of the more rythymical sections of the record which create memorability no end. This is not endless chugging chaos and blasting intensity. Albeit that none of them are all that particularly comforting or even vaguely safe spaces, CC do carve out niches of more accessible areas for the listener that hinted at some solid songwriting and compositional awareness bubbling beneath the surface. The most mature track (and for me the best on the record) is album closer Beyond the Cemetery, a track that progresses from its blitzkrieg opening into a well-paced piece of death metal.
It might be uncouth in its mannerisms but I prefer to think of it as being unapologetic instead. Its lack of layers it what underlines its appeal for me, and whilst I accept it does nothing to justify a full marks rating, it thoroughly deserves the four stars I am awarding it.
Whilst listening to Tomb of the Mutilated this morning a revelation hit me. The reason I was so belated getting into death metal was the fact that the very first DM band I encountered was Cannibal Corpse (possibly even this album, I don't remember) and I made the error of believing them to be typical of death metal in general. So what, I hear you say. Well the simple fact is that I find CC to be incredibly boring and so took very little interest in death metal generally after that. The vocals are a dull monotone that exhibit no emotional context and although they are capable of throwing out the odd decent riff, they seem incapable of sustaining it for any length of time. Then there is the band's whole extreme gore and horror perspective. Like slasher movies they don't repel or cause me moral outrage, they just bore me because they have no connection to my life or thoughts and so are rendered completely meaningless. I understand that it may just have been a way of baiting the PMRC and the Moral Majority, which, if it is the case, I wholeheartedly endorse, but, I'm sorry, that's just not enough for me. The drumming is good, I'll give them that, but outside the odd riff that briefly hits the spot I can quite happily live out my life never listening to Tomb of the Mutilated again.