Ooo this is heavy
Labelled by themselves as a brutal death metal band, this Cincinnati, Ohio 5-piece deliver their debut album 'Crucify. Kill. Rot'. From the outset its easy to tell that these lads ain't pissing about, they give you exactly what they claim to be brutal death metal that's probably some of the most heaviest music I think I've heard in a long time. Think of 'At the Gates' but think of them as being fed up playing their style of death metal and decided to go in a more heavier/hardcore direction.
Of course it all depends on what you define as heavy, but in this instance, sheer vicious attitude, uncompromising riffs, tight production, rasping vocals, down-tuned machine gun/staccato rhythms all add up to one heavy motherfucker of an album. Thankfully, for the most part the riffs on this album are quite hooky, 'State of Decay' is head-noddingly ball busting and opens out into a driving rhythm and is definitely an album highlight, and 'Buried Amongst Flames' is epic in its guitar work, structure and sheer lighting fast drum track which defies belief.
Even though this album is extremely heavy it's still very listenable. The basic one note chugging is always appealing and the production is slick and clean which allows the intricate changes to have maximum effect. I would say that musically 'Rose Funeral' aren't a million miles away from Killswitch Engage with the changes, breakdowns and harmony runs/riffs, but that's where the comparison ends as Killswitch are for schoolgirls compared to 'Rose Funeral'. Destin Armstrong growls and screams his way all over this disc and delivers such lyrics as, 'Crush in your face, spit up your teeth, I want you dead, I just want to see your blood,' with such frightening ferocity.
'The Well' is perhaps the album strongest number utilising the best of all the above assets within its 4:27 run time. At the heart of this album is a quite beautiful interlude in the guise of 'Intereo Diu' coupled with an understated prayer, which blends seamlessly with the piano led 'Dawning the Resurrection' all awashed with the sounds of rain and thunder. It's all unexpected considering the brutality that had preceded it.
For all the band's assets the music does come across as a little samey as they use the staccato rhythm far too much seemingly unable to utilise any other ideas to back up the vocals. Don't get me wrong, the idea is first class, there is just too much of the same thing. Apart from this aspect, the stop n start style to the music and the fairly short running time of thirty-five minutes, there's not much wrong with this release. It's heavy, succinct even sickening in places and if that's your bag then I'd urge you to pick up a copy of 'Crucify. Kill. Rot' if you can find it.