Entrails

Entrails stand out among the current resurgence of Stockholm, old-school death metal groups for actually having formed during the movement's early '90s heyday, yet they've only gotten around to releasing material in recent years. Whatever direct bearing this pedigree has upon the music's quality is difficult to assess, but rest assured the band sound confident and genuine, if somewhat resolute in their adherence to tradition. Compared to 2011's The Tomb Awaits, the focus has shifted slightly away from burly mid-tempos and melody-driven leads towards a leaner, hookier approach with a slightly raunchier edge. The standard reference points are still obvious — early Entombed, Dismember, Grave, etc. — but the songs feel more varied and memorable, relying less on the heftier production of its predecessor and further developing the dynamics necessary to stand out amongst the pack. An argument could be made for shortening the album somewhat, but there are no specific songs that merit cutting and there's no point where the music grows tiresome. Although many of these riffs may have been stockpiled for nearly two decades, it's remarkable how much fresher they sound here than on similarly styled releases from less experienced bands. Whatever the reason, Raging Death is the strongest pure genre offering of the year thus far, and a freshly inked Metal Blade deal sees Entrails in the enviable position of being able to reach a wider audience than ever before.