Review by Yener on May 14, 2019.

It's hard to believe that such an important album, at least to me, has not seen a single review on here. This will be a pleasure, an honor, and extremely difficult to articulate.

I can't remember how I discovered this band, as it's not easy for me to discover new music. I'm one of those people who don't use Spotify, because the "related artists" section is too distracting for me. When I listen to an album, I like to absorb it, and spend a ridiculous amount of time with it, so I'm not really known for branching out too much. What made Amenra different? The fact that they are signed to Neurot Recordings, home to Neurosis, had a lot to do with it. Neurosis are one of my favorite bands. I love every single note that band has recorded over their career. So, if they are signing a virtually unknown, abstract band from Belgium, then they must know something. I trust their judgement.

Amenra is hard to describe. To me anyway, it's more of an experience than music. It transcends music and revokes all sorts of thoughts and emotions. It's definitely not easy to listen to. I don't think anyone just casually listens to this band because they have great tunes. That's not to say that they don't have parts that you can remember, as they surely do, it's just that their albums are meant to be listened to as... albums. Not individual tracks.

The sonic landscape this band paints are terrifying, unnerving, emotional and bleak. It's all comes together, crashing down on you, like the weight of a thousand moons. The guitars often roar relentlessly, the vocals are tortured and full of all those years of sadness and hatred you've built up inside of you. On the flip side of the coin, the guitars can be slow and beautiful, making you hang onto each note, and the vocals can be silky and soothing, such as the female vocals in "Am Kreuz"

One of the highlights of the album is the diversity of the soundscapes displayed throughout the songs. No two songs are quite alike. They are only similar in sound, never in texture. The arrangements are incredibly well thought out. If the placement of the middle section in "The Pain... it is Shapeless" doesn't give you chills, then I'm not quite sure what will. 

The production and mix on the album are exactly the way it needs to be, supporting the music and themes. No one instrument over powers another instrument; however the vocals seem to be a bit quieter in the overall mix. I believe this was done on purpose, as something like this surely could not have gone overlooked in an album with so much detail. And that's another beautiful thing about this album - the layers of details. This is one of those albums that should be listened to on headphones, though a good set of speakers will also do. I find that personally, it's a lot more absorbing and rewarding when listened to on headphones.

If you're a fan of music which inspires you to think and to take you places, then it's essential that you obtain this.

Rating: 9.6 out of 10

Review by JD on November 22, 2008.

There are many bands that have used this overly used name, and most don’t really live up to it. Upon hearing SpikeFarm’s unique and very unsettled new signing, Sick... the name that so many bands have tried on for size, finally has a real owner.

This trio of demented people can be only described as a severely bastardised crossing of Doom Metal, Industrial music like early Ministry and then added in unholy satanic lyrics that eats it way through the rotting flesh of the living like a hungry mutated maggot. This album is not for the squeamish or the faint of heart, or for the normal Black Metal fans for that matter... yet the band is compelling and scary at the same time.

Sick is just simply very Doomy, depressing music that creates a world of morbid thoughts and deep torment melancholy that has ever been seen. They are sort of like November’s Doom in lyrical complexities, but their hearts seem as black as Satan’s soul and are clearly out to feed off of the unwary, the weak or the unlucky.. Musically, they are not overly ‘sparkling’ in that department, but they still end up kicking your ass with their heavy dirges they bring.

The album is hard to get through just once, and perhaps will not be played too many times by most people out there... but one listen of this bleak and highly deranged band is worth buying the damn thing. Sick is the unofficial yet twisted soundtrack for a world that no one needs to really know about, because it is their own minds.


Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 8
Atmosphere: 8
Production: 8
Originality: 9
Overall: 8

Rating: 8.2 out of 10

Review by JD on November 22, 2008.

There are many bands that have used this overly used name, and most don’t really live up to it. Upon hearing SpikeFarm’s unique and very unsettled new signing, Sick... the name that so many bands have tried on for size, finally has a real owner.

This trio of demented people can be only described as a severely bastardised crossing of Doom Metal, Industrial music like early Ministry and then added in unholy satanic lyrics that eats it way through the rotting flesh of the living like a hungry mutated maggot. This album is not for the squeamish or the faint of heart, or for the normal Black Metal fans for that matter... yet the band is compelling and scary at the same time.

Sick is just simply very Doomy, depressing music that creates a world of morbid thoughts and deep torment melancholy that has ever been seen. They are sort of like November’s Doom in lyrical complexities, but their hearts seem as black as Satan’s soul and are clearly out to feed off of the unwary, the weak or the unlucky.. Musically, they are not overly ‘sparkling’ in that department, but they still end up kicking your ass with their heavy dirges they bring.

The album is hard to get through just once, and perhaps will not be played too many times by most people out there... but one listen of this bleak and highly deranged band is worth buying the damn thing. Sick is the unofficial yet twisted soundtrack for a world that no one needs to really know about, because it is their own minds.


Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 8
Atmosphere: 8
Production: 8
Originality: 9
Overall: 8

Rating: 8.2 out of 10

Review by JD on November 22, 2008.

There are many bands that have used this overly used name, and most don’t really live up to it. Upon hearing SpikeFarm’s unique and very unsettled new signing, Sick... the name that so many bands have tried on for size, finally has a real owner.

This trio of demented people can be only described as a severely bastardised crossing of Doom Metal, Industrial music like early Ministry and then added in unholy satanic lyrics that eats it way through the rotting flesh of the living like a hungry mutated maggot. This album is not for the squeamish or the faint of heart, or for the normal Black Metal fans for that matter... yet the band is compelling and scary at the same time.

Sick is just simply very Doomy, depressing music that creates a world of morbid thoughts and deep torment melancholy that has ever been seen. They are sort of like November’s Doom in lyrical complexities, but their hearts seem as black as Satan’s soul and are clearly out to feed off of the unwary, the weak or the unlucky.. Musically, they are not overly ‘sparkling’ in that department, but they still end up kicking your ass with their heavy dirges they bring.

The album is hard to get through just once, and perhaps will not be played too many times by most people out there... but one listen of this bleak and highly deranged band is worth buying the damn thing. Sick is the unofficial yet twisted soundtrack for a world that no one needs to really know about, because it is their own minds.


Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 8
Atmosphere: 8
Production: 8
Originality: 9
Overall: 8

Rating: 8.2 out of 10

Review by Death8699 on October 31, 2019.

A slight change from the norm -- not in song titles or lyrical concepts, but a more "approachable" onslaught of metal due to the fact that Cannibal Corpse comes up with more listenable guitar orchestrations. A catchier infliction of domineering riff writing and leads, in the brief a memorable diseased warpath embodying thickness in distortion. Songs don't sound as repetitious of say Torture or older material -- a more solid approach of animation among the eardrum infestation. I say through and through, the writing style is heavy and virtuous, with less intense tempo infiltration, but still technical in terms of the riffs. I can't say that I fully enjoyed the "whammy" wah in their lead outputs -- I would say that is why I took some points off in a worthier scoring. If the band would have the leads taken out, then I might've been more generous in my rating.

Not to digress, but Corpsegrinder doesn't really sound any different in past discoveries in his vocal outbursts, he sounds the same. In my contention, his throat feeds well along the guitars and I would conclude that they wouldn't sound as brutal if he was taken out of the lineup -- though I do think that Barnes was better for the band, though we won't rehash ourselves from our earlier discoveries in musical form such as on Butchered At Birth and Tomb of the Mutilated. These were MY favorites and they've become a different band since he left then Fisher came in. For YOU guitar maniacs the sound of the band is as if they're once again here tuning to B-flat using a lot of heavy gauge strings with more heavy palm muted slays -- the technicality we shall revisit and say it is apparent once again with a "fresh" use in thickness extremities.

When we speak of the overall recording quality, its mastery is apparent. It exists here that the music is palatable, but in Cannibal Corpse's history I can't with full honesty say that this is their best work to date. I say it is solid no doubt -- their songs here flow rampant and the music is what makes the album admirable minus those leaks in weak lead guitar aspects. In ingenuity, O’Brien and Barrett come up with some interesting thickness, chunky, heavy, and explosive manifestations. To say this is a solid release is still the question -- would I be fair to say that this is deserving of a "greatness" or unfathomed ingenuity, I would say that it's a "B", a solid one if that.

We being listeners of metal know that this band have and will never depart from their concepts in lyrical domination, but I would be unfair to say that this one is unworthy of mention. The music does own the realm in its uncompromising heaviness as well as hefty drum episodes. A still same lineup as in past releases, just not really older releases therefore mentioned and covered. In proximity, this one musically is remaining to be heavy, dominant and ear deafening malevolence. It hits home with me, the riffs i.e. musical orchestration is summoning heaviness and would be prominent if as the leads technicality were more brightening or wholly omitted then the band would have a greater rating than what was given to it. A high "B" is still without a doubt, but Cannibal Corpse should focus more so on just the rhythms.

Concluding here as we've discovered death metal sheer precision, a definite boon to your collection, will not bore you as did (I found to be the case) older releases, just not the 2nd and 3rd albums -- those I deem as gems. They're definitely well over the styles in the early days with guitars that a much thicker and heavier distorted, whereas the early releases combined death metal vocals with a more thrashy guitar style. Definitely check out YouTube first to see if it's suitable to your palate, but I would say that followers of the band definitely will be more than satisfied with this one. Watch for catchy riff writing in both tremolo paths and technical onslaughts. Get this, it shall not disappoint or fall below your expectations -- it's notable and catchy, believe me in this entirety, the quality and ingenuity are well intact!

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Review by Yener on May 25, 2019.

It's that time for another Corpse album. I won’t mess about at all and just have to get this off my chest – this album is mighty. It’s one beast of an album, full of everything and anything you could ever want from Cannibal Corpse.

For starters, I’m glad that the band chose to work with a different producer. Not that there was anything wrong with the Rutan albums, but it’s just good to change things up a bit sometimes. It’s a bit of a gamble, sure, but if it works the payoff can be huge, just like it is here – and just like it was on Kill. I wish more bands would take this approach, such as Nile, rather than just working with the same producer over and over again. You never know who’s going to bring out the best in you.

“High Velocity Impact Spatter” – just the title is enough to get you going, and shit, does the track ever deliver. One of the most crushing opening tracks in Corpse history. You’ll immediately notice that the guitars sound thicker than ever, the bass is nice and audible, the drums are exactly the way they are supposed to be, and Corpsegrinder sounds fucking amazing. His vocals are nice and loud in the mix without washing everything else out.

Perhaps the best thing about this album is that it has something for every Corpse fan. The lighting fast tracks, the mid-tempo, groovy tracks, and the downright dirty, evil tracks. It’s easy to hear things from their entire discography here. I've talked with a bunch of Corpse fans about this album, and everyone seems to have their own favorite set of songs – yet they are mostly different. Which just shows to prove that this album caters to a lot of different Corpse styles, which is great.

The band, being the seasoned pros that they are, perform flawlessly on this record. That’s to be expected, and it would really surprise me if the technical ability wasn't up there with the best. What did surprise me though was the energy rushing through this album, something I felt their previous record Torture lacked. But here, it’s all over the place, and it’s absolutely relentless, and great to hear the band so determined.

Another great thing on this album is that we have more contributions from Pat. Criminally under rated, Pat is an amazing guitar player. Not just technically, but he’s a fantastic song writer as well, so hearing more of his stuff on this album is a real treat. I wish Rob could get in there a bit more as well, as I have always loved his writing style in Solstice and Malevolent Creation. That said though, this is the best Cannibal Corpse line up there ever was and will be, and here the guys are in top form.

For me, it’s hard to pick my favorites, but I would say that the strongest songs on the album are “High Velocity Impact Spatter”, “Sadistic Embodiment”, A Skeletal Domain”, “Headlong Into Carnage”, “Icepick Lobotomy” and “Hallowed Bodies.” I realize that that’s basically half the album right there, but Corpse really have cut the fat off of this one and just thrown that sucker on the grill. And the end result is just pure death metal badassery. Go get this.

Rating: 8.4 out of 10

Review by Adam M on December 17, 2014.

Cannibal Corpse has now been on a pretty good album streak with their last two full-length Torture and A Skeletal Domain. They see the band employing aggression in an intelligent manner to craft visceral, yet compelling death metal songs.

The songs definitely have a gore aspect that likens them to bands like Exhumed, who have more in common with Carcass than this band otherwise. The violence is played out well in the bands riffs that pay homage to those greats, but with a vibe that is all their own. The guitars are razor-sharp and the drumming provides a perfect backbone to the madness. Cannibal Corpse is fairly well-versed musically, but it’s how much the band enjoys playing their songs that makes them so enjoyable. There is a large dose of passion in the songs that eclipses what most death metal bands incorporate. The song-writing is solid and tight, but there isn’t anything overly innovative on this disc. It’s straightforward overall, but has enough nuances to be far more interesting than something like Six Feet Under. There is a far more driven nature to the music of this band that wants to craft a punishing platter of metal for the audience. See Icepick Lobotomy for the type of motivation this band has to craft a weighty piece of music. There is not much innovation here, but it’s hard to fault music that is this consistently well-crafted.

Quality oozing from one track to the next is something that seems to be difficult to achieve for some other death metal bands. A Skeletal Domain is eminently enjoyable on repeated listens. Most people know what they’re in for with this band, so enjoyment of the album is related to previous exposure along with interest in the band musically.

Rating: 8 out of 10