If you thought the last album from these Cali-gore-grinders, Karma.Bloody.Karma, was intense, well, it was. And somehow The Harvest Floor is even worse, um, better. If sewer-level grind burbling up out of the gas tank of that doctor who was busted using human fat to power his car is your bag, that is. And, hey, seize the day; I love this stuff, and anyone else who worships at the altar of early Carcass, underground crusty grind and old school death metal will too. Boasting a Billy Anderson production that the man himself claims is one of his finest, the album finds the grotesque vocals of Travis Ryan doing battle with the obscenely cool drumming of new kid on the chopping block David McGraw (check out the crazy playing on album opener and highlight "The Gardeners of Eden"). Be it the end-of-days grind of "We are Horrible People," the noisy technicality and/or downtrodden sludge found within "The Ripe Beneath the Rind" or the title track's melodic ambience, this band have never sounded so confident and secure in who they are. They've risen from the crust/grind underbelly and with The Harvest Floor, Cattle Decapitation are set to do battle with the greats of death metal.
You've had the album completed for a little while but waited to release it. How come?
Ryan: We would have had to tour through the beginning of winter. It's too scary. I'm in a vegetarian death metal band; I don't really give a shit about sounding like a pussy. We're fucking sick of people dying. It's fucked up out there. Why? So we can show up at a place and have half the crowd fucking flipping us off?
Speaking of you being a vegetarian death metal band, I understand that's something you don't really want to talk about anymore.
I totally understand that it's something you guys can grab on to and work with. We're always up for talking about it. I've just noticed the second it does come up in an interview, the rest of the questions are all going to be based on that. It's awesome but we're a band.
The band sound confident and ready on the album. What can people expect to see live?
Every show we've ever done has been kind of DIY; we don't have set lists, we just go, "What's next? This one? Okay." But this time we actually have a real set ready to go and we forked over the money for a sampler. So now we have a real rocking set, I guess.
(Metal Blade)You've had the album completed for a little while but waited to release it. How come?
Ryan: We would have had to tour through the beginning of winter. It's too scary. I'm in a vegetarian death metal band; I don't really give a shit about sounding like a pussy. We're fucking sick of people dying. It's fucked up out there. Why? So we can show up at a place and have half the crowd fucking flipping us off?
Speaking of you being a vegetarian death metal band, I understand that's something you don't really want to talk about anymore.
I totally understand that it's something you guys can grab on to and work with. We're always up for talking about it. I've just noticed the second it does come up in an interview, the rest of the questions are all going to be based on that. It's awesome but we're a band.
The band sound confident and ready on the album. What can people expect to see live?
Every show we've ever done has been kind of DIY; we don't have set lists, we just go, "What's next? This one? Okay." But this time we actually have a real set ready to go and we forked over the money for a sampler. So now we have a real rocking set, I guess.
