Gruesome Stuff Relish ‘Sempiternal Death Grind’ Album Review

In the deepest, darkest realms of extreme metal there is a little thing called grind. To some it is merely blaring noise but to others it is beauty in music. Within this relatively underground genre a few very niche sub genres have developed. One of these in particular being goregrind; made popular by British band Carcass. Goregrind is the primary sound of Spanish crew Gruesome Stuff Relish, as they return with their 3^rd studio album Sempiternal Death Grind.

The cover of the album itself guarantees “100% Massive Gorephonic sound” along with some rather nice but graphic 1940s horror movie style artwork. This carrys on into the album to a certain extent. The band seem to be incredibly fond of opening their songs with audio clips from classic horror films which borders on the over repetitive, but does add a degree of light relief to otherwise consistently intense grind sound.

Sempiternal Death Grind only really seems to hold two types of songs. Most of the songs deliver a good degree of variation whilst still identifiably grind metal. Self-titled song Gruesome Stuff Relish and They Follow Your Scent both include a melodic strings segment that fit nicely as a rose between two thorns in the heaviness of the grind whether it be for an almost humorous effect or otherwise. However on the other side of the things you can’t shake the sense that the album gets undeniably repetitive. Even to the point where some riffs sound like they have been re-used which is most predominant in They Are the Plague and End is Near, two tracks that stand side-by-side to each other on the album.

On a more pleasant note, the vocals are absolutely the record’s strength. The lead vocalist, Noel Kemper, shows the full capacity of his voice in the guttural screeches and gruff growls in every song which really alludes back to the style set out by the kingpins of the genre. Overall, Sempiternal Death Grind would appease the ears of loyal goregrind fans. Gruesome Stuff Relish provide a sound not too far from the original style set by the pioneers of goregrind but of course add that degree of innovation that any modern band brings to classic music. Whilst listeners who are less familiar with the genre may well be lost on the repetitive nature of some songs, it’s impossible to deny that this album is something to admire.

7/10