Dysentery - From Past Suffering Comes New Flesh (Amputed Vein; 2008)

Dysentery are a band I've wanted to like for a while. They are from my home state of Massachusetts and play a very straightforward brand of brutal death metal that I should like. However something has always held me back from liking this band. I don't really know what it is but something just does not click. I've talked to Andy about it and he feels the same way. Despite this though I decided to get their first full-length (they have also released a split with Gutrot) which is called From Past Suffering Comes New Flesh.

From Past Suffering Comes New Flesh features a lot of what you'd expect from a slam death album. There are the groovy breakdowns, fast blasting and quick, slightly technical riffs throughout. Dysentery tend toward shorter songs but this is made up for by having 13 songs on the album. The production is good and the vocals alternate between low and high gutturals. On surface level everything you want from a decent album.

However still there is something that makes me not like this album. It's hard for me to articulate but the best way to describe is that it seems like Dysentery are imitating a good slam album, rather than actually playing one. It's not like they are a clone band, which can be very good. Rather it's like they haven't really figured out how to structure all these breakdowns and blasts and gutturals into engaging songs. It's kind of like reading a novelization of your favorite movie. Yeah the plot is the same, but you'd rather just see the movie. To continue this metaphor, a clone band would be more like a remake of a movie, which as I mentioned can be good.

My recommendation for this album is to listen to some samples before you buy it. I don't know if everyone will have the same reaction to this as I did. As I said, on the surface it has all the elements of a good album, and that might be enough for some people.