It’s Monday and Mondays suck, so let’s grind it out with Whoresnation’s Mephitism.
Here’s a label I haven’t covered in a while: France’s very own Throatruiner Records. In fact, I probably haven’t written a word about the label since I did a review of Plebeian Grandstand’s False Highs, True Lows back in 2016. And for a label that puts out a lot of good music, well, it’s just been too long. Though to be fair it hasn’t been that long since I covered a French band (see: Warfuck). That’s not me making excuses, that’s just me plugging another article. Read more Monday Grind, you uncultured swine*.
Besançon, France brutal grinders Whoresnation has been kicking teeth in since 2009. And really, teeth-kicking is the bets way to describe their sound. Imagine Margrudergrind spliced with some Rotten Sound speed, a healthy dash of Vermin Womb. Whoresnation plays to the heavier side of things. Still punk in terms of attitude, but more death metal in execution when it comes to the grinding scale.
The band’s second full-length Mephitism spans twenty tracks in twenty-minutes. So, just what you’d come to expect from a grindcore band. No frills, no fancy stuff, get in, destroy, get out. And yeah, it is that simple. But beneath the brutal, blood-soaked porcelain tiles that the band routinely smashes over faces, there’s some fantastic riffage and drum working going on.
Take opener “Mephitic” as an example. It’s got a lead-in that’s inviting enough for a grind record. You know, in the way that you knock on someone’s door with a tire iron. It doesn’t immediately start out with a blast, but it leads up to some serious bounce that gets the album rolling. The song doesn’t feel predictable, but it does lead us into the punishment chamber.
It’s when “Carcan” starts that the album gets it’s brutal on. A quick brutal little riff, and the aggression is kicked up several notches and the blasting truly begins. Over forty-eight-seconds, the track is a non-stop blast fest shifting between straight up grind and deathgrind. The song twists and turns quickly, never cementing itself too much, and then effortlessly shifting into the third track “Expiration in Rot.” It’s at this point that you’ve probably picked up on what I’m talking about when it comes to fantastic drums and riffs. These songs sound fresh. But with how fast the record moves, you almost wouldn’t notice it at first.
Mephitisim as an overall record, is brutal. But then you look at the composition portion of it and it becomes pretty impressive. It’s a reminder of why I love bands like this and The Kill. There effort put into sounding as nerve-shatteringly pissed off as possible while also punching in some ridiculous riffage/drums is awesome. And in Whoresnation, it’s how they bring in that death metal sound without ever truly committing to the genre. It’s tracks like “The Limbs of Evil” where the band goes full grind and just pulverizes, but then that death metal riffage kicks in and the brutality just vamps up. “Apoplexy” has a similar attitude that leads into a destructive breakdown that leads into the beginning of “Chien Dedans, Chat Dehors” where it felt like the walls in my house were ready to start cracking.
When all is said and done, Mephitism is a seriously destructive record. But if you knew already knew what you were getting into. Whoresnation has released another banger with this one, and damn is it awesome. If it’s already been a crap week for you and you need to wreck something, throw this on, grab a hammer and go to town.
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Throatruiner Records Bandcamp | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Website
I'm here.
*I’m joking, but it’s the internet so I know I gotta say that because there’s some swine out there that legitimately feels offended by that. Probably. I don’t know, I don’t read comments.
