Hey you, dicks up who love Cannibal Corpse's 'The Bleeding' platter (from 1994, god damn that long ago?!)! 1... 2... 3 dicks. Haha, only joking! 'The Bleeding' happens to me my favourite CC album and in my opinion, their sickest to date. Eternal Grave come from Argentina. Their style is quite close to 'The Bleeding', with some interesting twists.

So, there are loads of gurgling gut-stretching riffage that became so familiar thanks to 'The Bleeding'. But, words are growled in Spanish, which gives this a bit of a different edge. About the growls: Low, guttural voice is accompanied by Chris Barnes style high-pitched (?!?!) throat rending. Anyways, it's not all Cannibal Corpse worship, as the likes of Machetazo and Disgorge (the Mexican one!) are also valid points of comparison, if not as big as CC. At its most technical point, bass playing reminds me of Steve DiGiorgio and Tony Choy's work. Most melodic parts (don't worry, nothing gay here) remind me of Death and Pestilence. Eternal Grave utilize these influences in almost every song here (grindcore piece 'Pus' being a true deviation), which makes the album lost its sharpest interest too fast. Catchier songwriting could do wonders for the band. But as it is, it should be interesting enough for sick 'n' heavy death metal freaks out there, as there's cool stuff aplenty in these 45 minutes.

So, soundwise this is heavy. Very heavy, indeed. It's also raw, but every instrument can be heard well, so the production job is well done. Guys handle their instruments, and vocalist is good enough, but could be a tad more imaginative with his voice. The cover artwork is definitely different, if not that good. It tells what lyrics are about... Well, some of them, as other topics include varying sexual activities and blood drinking.

Spanish language alone cannot lift Eternal Grave above the mass of death metal bands. However, they are skilled, so I hope that they could inject their brutality with some individuality, too. Worth of closer investigation, if you like old school death metal the heavy way.

Rating: 6 (out of 10) ratings explained

Reviewed by Lane
01/08/2007 19:22