Best Chris Barnes' era Cannibal Corpse by far. The guitars not yet tuned down to B-flat, they're in E-flat the whole album, but the vocals are what make the album it's heaviest. The music is more thrash oriented type of guitar playing. However, they're heavier than that sound because they incorporate more tremolo picking as well as palm muted riffs. They combine the thrash elements with the vocals and make this a virtual musical onslaught. If they tuned to B-flat on here, it'd be such an even heavier sound release. But as it, it did the band much justice. This was the old lineup, though some of the original members still remain in the band. Jack Owen is with Deicide now where he's not doing much songwriting.
There really isn't much variety in Barnes' low end-growls. They have some back-up guest vocals very briefly. I think that the music is what makes this album their best during this founding era. What differentiates it from their earlier era releases is the fact that the guitars I think make the most difference. I'd conclude still that 'Meat Hook Sodomy' is my favorite guitar melody sounding riffing. Throughout this under 40 minute onslaught is original songwriting put together which is absolutely astounding. A lot of people I think miss that with this album. From what I saw from the ratings were that this was highly underrated. I think the guitars and vocals make the album brutal, unique and fast. It's a slaughter!
Still not convinced? Well, try to envision just hearing the guitar then just hearing the vocals then hear them together in your mind and see what the end result is. Is it worth a perfect rating? My answer is a resounding YES! Why so high when it's being denounced? Because the guitar, the leads, the vocals, the drums, the intensity, the magnificence in originality, and the production quality. Every instrument/vocal outbursts are well heard on here. It's really a relief that I have a physical copy of this because some albums you can hear on headphones, computer and stereo with depending on the quality of these devices you might hear something that you didn't already before that makes it extravagant.
Overall, the guitars made the most difference on here. Barnes doesn't really have any range in his death metal oriented brutal style, though it fit on here. The reason is because the guitars were intense though not thick like their post-Barnes' era of the band. The music just is relentless. There are tempo changes on here, though they're not a whole heck of a lot of them. There's just enough I think. I've never heard more well played early Cannibal Corpse guitars that were thick, though thrash metal style, but were still heavy! What makes 'Butchered at Birth' stand alone is the fact that it's guitar riffing is the most creative and unique coming from a sickly and demented lyrical gutter.
If you think that Cannibal Corpse is good as they are now, you have to hear this one. Who's best equipped for the band nowadays though? I'd say George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher, both because I think Barnes was no good for the band, but because they just musically are different now even though they're still cranking out brutal death metal. 'Butchered at Birth' covers everything possibly unique in its' time: songwriting quality in the guitars (plus execution), guttural vocals, lyrical nightmare, better than quality production and every member of the band contributing in their intensity.
Rating: 10 (out of 10) ratings explained
Reviewed by Death8699
04/05/2015 11:46