Review by Death8699 on October 29, 2018.

HEAVY! This is probably the most outstandingly produced Cardiac Arrest album I've heard and I've heard all of them. Just simple death rot metal, not just "death metal". These Midwestern monsters of the underground continue their legacy with their new release off of Razorback Records respectively. What to expect to give you what I've already enunciated in my brief intro is thick guitar riffs still in B-flat tuning (for all you metal guitarists) with slow, moderate and fast riffs delving deep in original songwriting fashion. Extreme old death metal influence among the ranks of classic bands such as Autopsy, Obituary but CA is in a league of their own!

Vocals feature actually 3 different blends that suffice to say here are uncanny, deep, amongst some screaming, but mostly deep growl. They fit the music quite well and it's good that they feature this variety because it keeps the albums' wit and unvaryingly thickness vibe that's pretty much all CA albums are encapsulated with. The first track "Prelude To Madness" segues the album into a quite astonishing mass of riff writing that I've to touch more upon musically speaking. The prelude may seem monotonous, but I think it was on purpose because this segue gives you a sense that these guys will never give up their roots and continue to stay amongst the darkened pit of destruction of metal underground they've always been accustomed to.

To touch on their musical progression, it seems that the production quality made it easier to discern what is actually going on with these guitars. You can hear  pretty much everything, the bass too if you're listening very closely and their style hasn't changed, but their originality in musical composition seems to be what is at the root of this album. They've always been strong on their songwriting capabilities, but this one I think is the heaviest and most catchy writing style. They seem to put together a fresh new chunk slabs of riffs together with a maximum amount of distortion and bar chord/tremolo picking onslaught of axes that totally annihilate!

Frontman Adam Scott still shredding on lead guitar properly placing his varying arpeggios, sweeps and tremolo picking behind Tom Knizner's rhythm efforts that both Adam and Tom successfully correlated these collective pursuits here. The death rot/death metal community should embrace this album because of it's heaviness, uncanny blast beating, tempo changes and darkened aura of mood. This of course is alongside a band that just simply dominates for the reason that their devotion to the underground scene is just never going to cease (this I predict is until they retire). People that refuse to compromise like these guys should be the ones that deserve praise not like many other metal bands that retreat from their roots just to sell records. CA should sell a ton for the sake of refusing to abandon their unrelenting desire to stay HEAVY. 

If you want to hear what death rot truly is And Death Shall Set You Free is equipped with all incorporated style of precision recording quality, drum work with blast beating intensity along with precise double bass/time signature changing. Guitars that are just so damn heavy they'll destroy your speakers, vocal variety domination and screeching leads to the point of eardrum explosion. This band continues to dominate the death rot/death metal music core of Chicago's underground music scene. You won't hear anything except sheer dominance of a performance and hope that they'll continue this onslaught throughout their days. So grab this CD metalheads to embrace the horror/destruction they've obliged listeners to hear with outstanding songwriting capabilities proving that metal is definitely alive, well, and undying.......

Rating: 9.5 out of 10

Review by Jack on October 30, 2001.

Mortiis. What can you say? Mr. Troll returns without his medieval swagger and thrusts all us willing puppies into his techno/dance hall of obscurity. I’m going to attempt to classify Mortiis’ “The Smell of Rain” to a genre (for the sake of definition and I love to genreise everything), okay here goes; Gothical synthetically industrialised synthesized regressed rock. Hopefully that will help classify a portion of what Mortiis attempts on “The Smell of Rain” and a small part of what actually succeeds.

Mortiis left arguably the greatest black band (Emperor) to concentrate on synthesized meandering in the dark, castle metal genre. No real instruments were regularly present on any of his past records (by that I mean guitars, drums and the like) and “The Smell of Rain” is no exception.

‘Scar Trek/Parasite God’ starts off with some wierdo dance beat and then proceeds to go on with some alternate sort of music that would be suited to a techno-martial arts film. There are some quality licks on here though; ‘Marshland’ features some catchy chorus work and a solid beat, whilst ‘Everyone Leaves’ is so heartfelt it belongs on a Michael Bolton album (that is the best comparison I could make, sorry I didn’t mean to turn anyone off “The Smell of Rain”).

“The Smell of Rain” really does belong in the Goth/rock/industrial section of a CD retailer or the techno/dance segment rather than the metal part. I do not see that as happening however; as one look at the troll-lad on the cover and the Earache record label (notoriously heavy metal label) will see him lumped in with the death belters, which is unfortunate as Mortiis really has broken his semi-metal shackles and should be allowed to propel himself to fame in other music.

“The Smell of Rain” is not a bad record, it is just taking a while to comprehend where Mortiis wanted to undertake musically on “The Smell of Rain”, so many disjointed thoughts and ideas come out as being slightly odd. Good but odd.

The stupid thing is I initially started with a 5 out of 10 for this record, but as kept listening it kept on appealing more and more to me (and now I can’t stop shaking my head to “The Smell of Rain”). I applaud Mortiis for his ability to create catchy tunes.

Bottom Line: I have a very fine line when it comes to the appreciation of dance/techno music; I either do not listen or can slightly acknowledge the smallest smatterings of it. Fortunately for me (and other metalheads) Mortiis is that smallest smattering, and “The Smell of Rain” is not too bad.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Review by JD on March 16, 2012.

For years, I have been telling the world that Canada is the newest hotspot for metal and the world is starting to see. One of those bands that is starting to make the world notice the metallic might of Canada is Moncton New Brunswick based political thrashers Dischord (not the punk band of the same name).

Taking the styling of old school Thrash like Exodus and older Testament and some 3 Inches Of Blood, adding in some Hardcore elements a la Agnostic Front and the some progressive way of arranging things, you get Thrash that is Superthrash. Talented and brutal, Dischord seems to be on the verge of something remarkable.

Songs like the nasty Speed Metal tinged Thrash of 'Silent Genocide' that shows a razor walk of balance between full on chaos and talent rich control, while the slower and darkly menacing hammering of 'Shadow Demon' pounds into your mind and shows a fiery yet natural maturity that some acts never get throughout an entire career. The whole album goes on like this, walking that tightrope and succeeding with each and every note the band throws at the listeners.

Gotta say that I am impressed as all hell at the moment, not to mention a proud Canuck. Dischord is a band that shows that all Thrash is not created equal. I may have coined the phrase earlier, but it still holds true. This is Superthrash, and as a Canadian, I gotta be proud as hell. You know, I am.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 9
Atmosphere: 9.5
Production: 8.5
Originality: 9
Overall: 9

Rating: 9.0 out of 10

Review by JD on April 19, 2013.

Have you ever seen the name of an album, and was instantly intrigued by it? I was sent Sweden based Sterbhaus’s album and that thing actually happened from the second my eyes looked at the impressive cover. I was drawn in by the album name as well – but I stayed because of the band’s music.

Thrash and Death Metal collide in the heart and minds of this band, along with a healthy dosing of humour added in to make everything that much more alive. Smart, tongue-in-cheek irreverence and 100% Metal, this is exactly the way to impress all of the masses of bangers out there on our great blue planet. Sterbhaus commands respect without demanding it, offering up a powerful shot of metal.

I can’t choose the best songs here, as they seem to be all solidly made songs. I had to laugh at the irreverence of 'Ripping The Pope', but also was impressed with the pummelling riffs and earthquake inducing bass rumbles on this track as well. Other songs that impressed this old headbanger like the kill shot of 'Ministry' or the laugh inducing 'Faceplant Armageddon'. This album is full of metallic thunder that screams to be heard – and dammit, I LISTENED!

This is one of those albums that you enjoy all the way through. This band is one of the few lately that has impressed me like this. "Angels For Breakfast…" is one good record. Buy this and play it fuckin’ loud! This is my prescription for curing the heavy boredom while we wait for spring to finally arrive.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 10
Atmosphere: 10
Production: 9.5
Originality: 8.5
Overall: 9.5

Rating: 9.5 out of 10