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Bastard Grave – Vortex Of Disgust

bastard grave – vortex of disgust

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With ‘Vortex Of Disgust’ the Old School Swedish Death Metal combo of Bastard Grave delivers their third album. And anyone who has heard some of the band’s earlier work knows what to expect, as Bastard Grave isn’t quite into forward thinking territories of the Death Metal genre. On the contrary, even. With their previous work they did pay an obvious homage to Death Metal from the late 80’s and early 90’s. And while a lot of nowadays genre peers tend to be a little bland sounding, Bastard Grave were always able to deliver the goods…

With this new album, again released by Pulverised Records, they didn’t stray away from that chosen path. Though hailing from Sweden, they do not sound overly Swedish. Instead the band adds just any sort of Death Metal they enjoy to their own mix. Making it easy to recognize bits and pieces from Benediction, Bolt Thrower, Sinister and Grave. Heavy on the rolling and chugging riffs of Bolt Thrower they slash their way to the Grave and Sinister like brutality while the more standard and stomping rhythms of early Benediction top things off just so nicely. The success of Bastard Grave might be found in just that, it is a musical feast of recognition for anyone who loves early Death Metal classics in any way. Be it the aforementioned bands or, for example, Atrocity, Brutality, Monstrosity or Demigod.

However, ‘Vortex Of Disgust’ can be seen as the band’s most mature album to date, things have been settled in a bit better than on the previous recordings, but it got there at the expense of a bit of a rougher and rawer edge. So, it is a bit up to the listener’s preference how this album is experienced. The rawer sound certainly has its charm and gave those earlier recordings a bit more of a demo-like feel, but on ‘Vortex Of Disgust’ the music sounds more cohesive and, in addition, the slower tracks come out a bit better this way.

Just like Bastard Grave showed us with their earlier recordings, they are certainly a band that knows their craft. They know their classic Death Metal and are able to forge it into something that is far from unique, but still refreshing in a rewarding way. To that tradition, ‘Vortex Of Disgust’ fits seamlessly. Definitely an album that can be considered amongst the most interesting in the Old School Death Metal genre of recent months.

Pulverised Records

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