Killwhitneydead

From the searing high desert, Flagstaff, Arizona’s Killwhitneydead have not only offered fans an inventive take on the predominantly lacklustre gore-grind genre, but they’ve also thrust the sampling frenzy of Ministry and Mortician to new zeniths. Halfway through the opener "Where There’s Smoke,” the grind sloughs away to reveal muscular Panteran riffage, interwoven with brutal Michael Douglas film quotes. The samples are incisively exacting: most bookend each track and pop up during bridges, but "You Like Knife Play? I Love Knife Play” incorporates a looped selection right into the chorus-like classic Ministry. "I Didn’t Know ‘I Love You’ Came With A Knife In The Back” and "Duct Tape And Death Threats” are dazzling crosses between Cadaver-ish black metal and Trivium-styled melodicism. Pantera rightly meets Botch on "The Fine & Subtle Art Of Deception” and "You Will Get Exactly What You Deserve (And Not A Bullet Less)” tosses in a voice snippet also used in Mortician’s "Bloodcraving” before galloping away with Witchery-esque thrash. "Nothing Says ‘Party’ Like Her Head On A Stick” reprises said power metal vibe with Carcass-fuelled brutality. For "She Didn’t Look Like She Had A Disease,” front-man/sampler Mike lends the mic to guest singer Dr. Extremis Melodicus, who boasts clean vocals like Anthrax’s Joey Belladonna fronting Big Iron, and ends with a Bruce Dickinson-forged falsetto scream. Displaying their true metal colours, "Who Said Alcohol And Handguns Didn’t Go Great Together?” even sports an interpretation of Judas Priest’s "Breaking The Law.” All this plus naughty Suicide Girls artwork make KWD major metal players, and with Mortician past their prime, Never Good Enough For You is the best half-hour of grinding deathcore mayhem this year.