Sweden's Carcass loving gore grind maniacs General Surgery make their comeback on this release, dropping seven tracks and about 20 minutes of raging death/grind full of sick vocal layering (growls, snarls, screams, you name it), churning guitars that definitely have that Swedish texture, and great writing sensibilities that mix up the tempos and infuse a little tasteful melody to keep things interesting. Most of the songs are short but sweet, not to mention consistent, but then they close with the whopping 6:22 "Convivial Corpse Disposal Methodology/Severe Catatonic Intersection of Pathological Activities", and damn if it isn't one of the better songs herein! The lyrics don't do much for me, but I would expect no less from the genre: "Parasitical theory in practice, Rectal juices extolled with verve, The Pinnacle of evolution, Dismembered and befouled with zest..." The recording is a bit lacking in density, but I love the fact that the bass tone plays a large role behind the guitars. The reason it sounds sort of thin and abrasive is because everything sort of falls within the same tonal range, with the vocals harnessing the most complete range of textures. It actually sounds pretty good, but a heavier dose of low-end would really kick this stuff up a notch. The County Medical Examiners are back again with six tracks in 18 minutes, this time with a new lineup, but never fear - they're still a trio of medical examiners! It's no surprise that their style remains intact, also heavy on the classic Carcass influences and over the top gargling vocals. I'm glad to see that not only are the vocals mixed in better with the music, but there are some melodic leads as well, which I definitely would still enjoy hearing more of. But to my great dismay the recording is still not up to par, and in fact this sounds worse than most of the band's other releases. There's no real bass presence at all, so a lot of gaps exist in the lower range, the drums sound a little too tight (not bad, but they stand out due to the lack of depth), and the guitars are too rugged and sort of crispy to do any real damage. They need to turn up the bass, nail a thick and heavy guitar tone, and keep everything else where it is. The vocals are perfectly placed this time, and I think the drums would work out fine if the bass was audible. As usual practically ridiculously specific medical tales run rampant throughout the lyrics: "Antemortem microorganisms lead a postmortem mutiny of rot, The drifting stiff's bloated demeanor inspires nausea and distraught, Severe marine predation and mutilation tests the scene investigator's stamina, So they call upon credential experts... The County Medical Examiners..." The layout's not bad. It looks pretty crisp and professional. There are lots of images of bodybags, some blood, band photos, and then under the tray is an ambulance with both band logos on the back. The tracklist is printed on toetags hanging off of a corpse's feet... which makes you wonder if that's a real corpse!? I wouldn't be surprised, not one bit. This is a good split, but General Surgery definitely takes it. I like The County Medical Examiners' songs, but I'm disappointed in their sound quality this time out - it really hinders them.
[Razorback]
Running time - 37:00, Tracks: 13
[Notable tracks: Mortuary Wars, Convivial Corpse Disposal Methodology/Severe Catatonic Intersection of Pathological Activities, Cooperative Cadaveric Custody]
Razorback Records - http://www.razorbackrecords.com
