Review by Shadowdoom9 (Andi) for Meathook Seed - Embedded (1993)
I just realized my long-lasting digging for older industrial metal and metalcore albums from the 90s will soon reach its end. I've pretty much tackled almost every essential 90s release from those two genres! Another album to tackle in the industrial metal part of my list is this one from the side-project of a couple extreme Horde bands. Meathook Seed is an Obituary/Napalm Death side-project than turned out to be pretty great in the debut album Embedded. It takes on an aggressive industrial death metal sound, in which some of the elements would be re-used by Napalm Death next year, even having a bit of Napalm Death's grind. There's barely any relation in sound to Obituary, showing how adventurous that side of the project can be. Performing in a style from the main bands is a risky fire-player, but ultimately it works out quite well.
Embedded has some grace in their deathly industrial metal assault, adding in the repetitive yet amazing sound of Ministry and Godflesh and twisting in with deathly heaviness, alongside memorable riffs to keep you hooked. Mitch Harris has the guitar fury of Napalm Death that actually works better for me in this album. Donald Tardy drums through pummeling destruction, but he gets paired with a drum machine in some tracks, which is OK since he just obliterates it! Trevor Peres' vocals are killer, ranging from growling to shouting, though I prefer the former.
The crushing opener "Famine Sector" is, without a doubt, one of the best songs of this industrial death metal blend! I don't have much to describe its greatness. "A Furred Grave" has the best of Peres' vocal alternation. They continue to roll in "My Infinity", though a bit monotonous. "Day of Conceiving" viciously punches through in sludgy grind.
"Cling to an Image" is the second-best song of the album (behind its opener), in which dynamic beats intertwine with the complex guitar. "A Wilted Remnant" is a bit more electronic, though this is the industrial/noise kind of electronic sound, nowhere near as trance-y as bands like The Browning. The most talented Harris has been in this offering is "Forgive", where he breaks down the structural walls to let his riffs run wild in different directions without any tiring guitar solo.
"Focal Point Blur" has more power in the beats and riffs to get you buckled up for the ride. It can be bumpy for the inexperienced listeners, but once you get more experience, you can be able to cope and understand. Let it immerse you or not! The title instrumental gets on my nerves, but it's still decent. "Visible Shallow Self" is one more metal track with the electronics displayed that are far closer to the industrial of Fear Factory than the trance of Iwrestledabearonce. "Sea of Tranquility" is just 14 minutes of full-on industrial, complete with ambient loops, simple drums, and noisy feedbacks. Is that where the name of that website Sea of Tranquility came from? Probably...
Meathook Seed themselves have even manned the production for the album, and it's at a Colin Richardson kind of professional level. The rich sound lets you hear all the guitars, drums, and electronics there are, despite the layers of the latter sounding a bit buried. It's given this industrial death metal album the right atmospheric vibe. Works well for a run through an old abandoned factory in a mutant zombie apocalypse. Bummer the lineup that made something this pleasantly deathly wasn't meant to last....
Favorites: "Famine Sector", "A Furred Grave", "Cling to an Image", "Forgive", "Focal Point Blur", "Visible Shallow Self"