Review by Adam M on October 28, 2014.

An aggressive, stripped down form of thrash is presented nicely on Book of the Worm. This is relatively straight forward death metal that brings chops and good song-writing to the table in a manner not unlike Morbid Angel’s Alters of Madness. In fact, Book of the Worm is a good alternative to that one if you still have the thirst for a similar sound to the classic album.

Guitar riffs are intense in nature, but not overly technical either. Thus the album is one that is good for short bursts of listens rather than an overly contemplative one. Everything is done so well for the style that there aren’t really many regrets to the simplicity of the style. Fans of the style of Obscura and mid to late period Death might not find what they’re looking for. Those that appreciate classics like early Obituary, early Death or early Morbid Angel will find more to be enamored with, however. The songs also have a bit of a black metal flavor that is incorporated by some of these death metal bands to give their music more character. Here, the death metal overrides the slight black metal aura that is largely supplied in part by the vocals. It’s an addiction to the power of the riff and assault of the percussion that wins out in the overall sound, as seen from Through the Gates (They Come For Me), for example. The songs are short, but consistent and all make an impact in their short running times.

The lack of innovation might be a fault to some, but when music is written this well, it’s their addictive and crushing nature that will appeal to the listener. This isn’t a new vision for death metal, but an excellent re-visitation of an old one. Fans of rudimentary classic death metal will be very satisfied with Book of the Worm.

Rating: 8 out of 10