It should be obvious to anyone who steps foot into the metal underground for even a brief moment that the nasty, unsightly, and grotesque oftentimes capture the attention of the masses. Long has such an approach been the name of the game for many, yet it takes more than a somewhat bogged-down production value in order to bring such moments to the surface. You need to be knowledgeable of the particular brand of brutality you wish to bring to the table, not simply just beating your instruments to death, ironically. Fortunately, we live in a time where there’s always fresh talent to be that doesn’t just measure up properly but deliver superb intensity from top to bottom. With what’s only their second album, Grave Infestation achieves such madness masterfully.

I still find it endlessly fascinating how much of a web the underground is with its legions of musicians that constantly keep themselves busy by being active in multiple acts. It’s far from uncommon to see the same person show up in several different bands, oftentimes different styles altogether, with some standing out more than others. Given the sheer pedigree and previous experience of those behind Grave Infestation, a performance like “Carnage Gathers” should not be a surprise to us, yet it is in every single one of these eight cavernous tracks that we’re given a singularly intense delivery that never once misses an opportunity to cave in the skulls of the lesser. A collection of riffs that manages to empower the listener while always priming their downfall, it’s in each barbaric swing of the axe throughout this whole record that Grave Infestation displays a terrifying display of power that never once lacks or slips in its potency. Captivating all the while and downright primeval in its haunting nature, “Carnage Gathers” constantly and consistently lives up to its very name. It’s death metal murderous and true. Unapologetic in its intensity and perpetually manic in its bloodlust. Where blood splatters against cold stone and there’s naught but the steam of mankind’s brutality upon itself, “Carnage Gathers” invokes primal violence at every turn.

An exemplary demonstration of what it means to understand the very nature of your corner of the underground without a shred of compromise or weakness to be had in its entirety, what Grave Infestation has crafted here cannot be deemed anything short of unrelentingly devastating. It was already that Grave Infestation had loads of promise to tap into, yet it is with everything brought to the table within “Carnage Gathers” that it should be evident we’re dealing with an act that commands respect and presence in heaps with the future theirs for the taking so long as they do not release their iron grip.

LISTEN to “Carnage Gathers” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Grave Infestation on Facebook here.