Artist: Cannibal Corpse
Album Title: Butchered at Birth
Genre: Death Metal
Lyrics: Chris Barnes
Country: Florida, USA
Label: Metal Blade
Format: Album
Release date: 07/01/91
Hello, everyone. At last, I came to death metal album. I usually more prefer black metal to death metal, but in the early nineties at the same time as in Norwegian began the wave of the black metal (with Mayhem, Burzum, and Darkthrone in ahead), in the new world, began the wave of death metal (led by Death, Cannibal Corpse, and Morbid Angel). And it was the time of the maximum rise of this style. And my today's review about one of the greatest death metal albums of all times, about "Butchered at Birth" of Cannibal Corpse.
Before talking about the music, I want to tell a few words about the cover. I don't know who the author of this cover, but in the period before all these goregrind bands, this cover was just something sick. In some countries, this album was or not sell, or sell with another cover, or sell to customers older than 20 years. I think most part of today's death metal and grindcore bands making their album covers being inspired by "Butchered at Birth" album cover. It's really wicked and brutal.
Cannibal Corpse is one of the most influential death metal bands of all times. The first death metal band of all times Death sounded more like a thrash metal, until the end of their musical career (death of Chuck Schuldiner). But Cannibal Corpse made a great influential on today's death metal sound, and they made their own death metal sound. And now, after Chris Barnes's leaving the band, there are two great death metal bands, Cannibal Corpse (with George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher as the vocalist), and Six Feet Under (with Chris Barnes as a vocalist and leader of the band)
Florida was the cradle of death metal, with such giants of death metal like Death, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel, Obituary, Deicide, etc. These bands are indisputable leaders of death metal, and also it is my favorite death metal bands.
Talking about the sound, you should understand, it is not today's death metal, this sound is very different from new bands. It is a classic death metal sound, with a big influence of thrash metal. And at the time when this album was made, musical equipment, recording studios, and even musical tastes of metalheads were different to today. Today's bands making a more heavy sound. But if there was no this band with such sound, today's death metal did not exist.
The sound is great, in my opinion, and everything sounds at the right time in the right place, it is very difficult to imagine this album was played in a different way. It is a masterpiece of one of the greatest death metal bands of all times, made at the time of maximum famous of the genre. It being very rarely when such extreme and non-mainstream genres like a death metal has a commercial success but in the first half of 90th in the USA, and in the whole world later, it was such time. And almost each of the best albums was made in this period.
This is a true masterpiece, highest score. Should be listened.