Fit For An Autopsy / Thy Art is Murder / Malevolence – The Aggression Sessions (EP)
Release Date: 7th April 2022
Label: Nuclear Blast
Bandcamp
Genre: Deathcore, Death Metal, Groove Metal.
FFO: Whitechapel, Chelsea Grin, AngelMaker.
Review By: Trina Julian Edwards
On Friday, April 7, Fit For An Autopsy, Thy Art is Murder, and Malevolence bring us The Aggression Sessions, the hoped-for follow-up to 2016’s Depression Sessions (Fit For An Autopsy, Thy Art is Murder, and The Acacia Strain). They continue the same format on this EP, with each band performing an original song and one cover.
If you’re going to call your album The Aggression Sessions, it better start off by being aggressive. Luckily, New Jersey’s Fit For An Autopsy don’t let us down. Hellions is the band’s original song for the EP, and it’s most definitely aggressive. In the press release, they note that it’s a nod to 2013’s Hellbound — not that you can miss it. Long-time fans of the band will recognize the same brutal energy stemming from songs like Do You See Him or Still We Destroy. Hellions throws down at breakneck speed, and it is relentless in its intensity…until it isn’t. When it comes to a screeching halt, that breakdown is just agonizing. Vocalist Joe Badolato seriously sounds like at least 5 different people here. He is Legion. Honestly, it’s fitting, because when he growls, “Rise, hellions!,” I’d swear he’s summoning something.
Following on the heels of that scorcher is another original track, this time from Sydney, Australia’s Thy Art is Murder with Until There Is No Longer. Holy…This thing is nasty. It’s dense and thick like mud. The underlying rhythm is ridiculously, deceptively quick and per usual, CJ’s gutturals are just absolutely demonic. The doubling of the vocals and the guitar is genius, and makes it feel even thicker, which I did not think was possible. And the groove! Something this massive has no business being groovy, yet here we are. You practically have to chew this. This track is thrumming like some monstrous engine from start to finish. I loved every second. This is one of the best deathcore songs I’ve heard so far this year, and I’m going to go out on a limb and say it may be one of Thy Art’s strongest efforts in their entire discography. That’s a hill I’m willing to die on.
Most bands would be terrified to follow that behemoth, but Malevolence has risen to the occasion. The Sheffield, England quintet has gifted us with Waste of Myself, their original contribution. I’m digging the kind of riffy White Zombie-ish intro, but then it just kicks into gear, and you’re wondering wtf just happened. The tempo drops back down again on the verse, and it’s got some serious Pantera-esque swagger. Think, I’m Broken, but faster and grittier. The vocals are aggressive and combative, and that guitar squall is simply perfect. Channeling the best of 90s metal here and I have no complaints. When they’ve got you solidly in that groove, they toss in some beatdown elements, which honestly shouldn’t work, but somehow it does. And that’s the beauty of Malevolence.
The first of the three covers is Fit For An Autopsy’s rendition of Under a Serpent Sun by At the Gates. I’m not a big cover song person in general, but this is positively spot on. They religiously keep the spirit of the original but somehow give it more mass. Joe Bad nails Tomas Lindberg’s vocals and Putney’s guitarwork is a perfect blend of the iconic Gothenburg melodeath sound meets deathcore. Melodeathcore, if you will. Fit For An Autopsy have steadily been evolving into a more melodic beast — especially since 2017’s Black Mammoth — so this is a perfect song for them to cover. There’s melody and brutality in equal measure. There’s nothing particularly groundbreaking here, but I don’t think that’s what they were going for. Regardless, this is a hell of a cover. There’s always a risk in covering genre-defining bands like At the Gates, but Fit For An Autopsy absolutely did this justice.
And speaking of genre-defining bands, Cannibal Corpse’s unforgettable Hammer Smashed Face gets an update courtesy of Thy Art is Murder. I think sometimes we forget the members of Cannibal Corpse were/are skilled musicians, myself included, because it’s so easy to get distracted by their over-the-top themes. However, some of the chords are tricky and it’s quite fast in sections. The 1992 original has a thinner sound, a kind of rawness suited to the times, but Thy Art is Murder have turned this classic into a filthy, robust beast. The rhythm is full and chunky, and the guitarwork has added more of that nice little groove that they do so well. I feel like the cover is a bit speedier, but they slide into those down-tempo changes as smooth as glass. Perhaps best of all, CJ’s vocals are beautifully indistinguishable, like the inimitable Chris Barnes himself. Top-notch cover of this death metal staple.
And now for something completely different…The final track on the EP is a cover of pop diva Anastacia’s Left Outside Alone. I have to say it’s an interesting choice. Malevolence have definitely sludged it up and given it a dirty veneer, but it brought the momentum of the EP to a grinding stop. It’s got some beefy riffs and some seriously menacing undertones, but… It’s decidedly not aggressive and it feels out of place among the rest of the tracks on the EP. With monsters like Fit For An Autopsy and Thy Art is Murder to live up to, in the words of deathcore pioneers, As Blood Runs Black, you better “Bring the motherfuckin’ ruckus!” This is not it. There is no ruckus happening here. Frankly, this would have been more fitting on the previous split EP, because it’s actually kind of depressing. It’s baffling that they dropped the tempo at the chorus, while the original actually picks up speed. I think that’s part of the disconnect for me. I keep expecting the tempo to pick up, but it really never does to any extent. I’m also not convinced the vocals are particularly suited to this type of song. I love that they gambled on a song so foreign to the music they usually do, but I just don’t think it paid off. Not my cup of tea.
Overall, the EP and its predecessor are part of a great concept and I hope they continue it down the road. I love to hear the original tunes each band brings to the table, as well as how they interpret their various covers. Malevolence is not, perhaps, the best fit, but I did quite like their original contribution. I’m a huge Fit For An Autopsy fan, and I thoroughly enjoyed their tracks, but I have to admit Thy Art is Murder stole the show for me. Until There Is No Longer immediately went on permanent rotation, and their take on Hammer Smashed Face is not to be missed. If you’re a fan of any of these bands, I heartily recommend giving it a listen. The Aggression Sessions is available digitally this Friday, April 7, and you can pick it up on CD or vinyl, July 21st.
(4 / 5)
