Back in 2020, in the midst of a once in a century pandemic, I predicted Undeath would be the next death metal band to pack 1,000 capacity venues on their own. While they haven’t gotten quite there yet, they’re certainly on the right path. Whether it be playing festivals like Psycho Las Vegas (RIP) and Milwaukee Metal Fest, or touring alongside names like Exodus, Thy Art is Murder, and Gatecreeper, Undeath have been making a name for themselves and fast. They most certainly fit the ongoing OSDM niche, which has since turned into some sort of bizarre death metal/hardcore crossover, but I digress.
The point being, Undeath will likely appeal to your current mainstream death metal fan, and for good reason: The Cannibal Corpse worship is STRONG with this band. I wouldn’t go so far as to call them a CC knockoff, obviously, as their first two albums have proven they are more than capable of writing their own catchy slabs of midtempo death metal. However, it only takes one listen to tell these boys spun Tomb of the Mutilated a time or ten. The same can be said for their latest full length bludgeoning, More Insane.
The opening “Dead From Beyond” picks up right where they left off with 2022’s It’s Time…to Rise from the Grave. The riffs are pummeling and the production is punchy and clear, without being overtly sanitized. Par the course for a band of this nature, there is a pseudo-slam Dying Fetus mosh passage thrown in (the first of quite a few), but for the most part, Undeath keeps it simple and straightforward. Cuts like “More Insane” and “Bones Clattering in the Cave” further expand upon the CC formula, while “Brandish the Blade” bulldozes like a ’90s Bolt Thrower deep cut and “Disputatious Malignancy” rampages around in all its demented brutal death/thrash glory.
Interestingly enough, there is an underlying melodic death metal influence throughout this entire album, especially in the leads of a song like “Sutured for War”. What’s intriguing is that even during these melodic moments, Undeath never goes full bore on the ’90s Swedish bandwagon, but rather comes off as, you guessed it, CC goes melo death. Another outlier is the overtly technical “Disattachment of a Prophylactic in the Brain”, which is as chaotic and unhinged as it sounds. Songs like these certainly embolden the second half, which is largely dominated by one-dimensional death metal/hardcore hybrids like “Cramped Caskets (Necrology)”, “Bounty Hunter”, and “Wailing Cadavers”: Guaranteed to appease the average college aged death metal normie, but doesn’t do much in the long run for yours truly.
Predictable chug-o-ramas aside, More Insane is yet another strong offering from one of the most promising acts in death metal today. I wouldn’t say it’s any better or worse than its predecessor in terms of consistency, but it’s certainly more adventurous in its sonic approach, and in turn more, *ahem*, insane. See what I did there? Kudos to Undeath, who are likely signing their name on the dotted line to open another high profile metal tour as I type this. Keep on splittin’ heads and raisin’ the dead!
7 out of 10
Label: Prosthetic Records
Genre: Death Metal
For fans of: Cannibal Corpse, Sanguisugabogg, Frozen Soul
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