It’s been a quiet few years for Looking for an Answer. Though the band has never had the level of releases that, say, Suffering Mind once shoved out. And to that end, one could argue that the band is perhaps more deliberate. Oh they’ve had their slew of splits with bands like the mighty Agathocles and Cripple Bastards, but throughout seventeen years, they’ve only put out four full-lengths. And if the last few years has left you starved, well Dios Carne has finally arrived.
Google translated: God became flesh. Because I’m still monolingual. But with that album artwork, I’m sold. It’s as chaotic and abrasive as every track on Dios Carne. And what does that sound like? Blistering, old school death-infused grindcore.
In case you missed it with the Kraken EP, vocal duties have switched from Iñaki (2000-2012) to Santi (ex-Nasghul, Deadmask). Their styles aren’t radically different; both are growlers. And the music hasn’t changed much either. And the style of the music hasn’t shifted any. So, what’s the deal with Dios Carne?
This is a thundering piece of maddening grindcore. Looking for an Answer has always been a heavier sounding band, they really conjure the abyss on this one. Tracks are almost always dismally heavy, way more than on previously releases, and even when the band is bull-rushing blasts. Take the intro track “Deflagración.” Once you get past the intro, the two minute trudge the song is thundering. Like the gods are dancing on graves. The punk element is still there, especially when the track breaks down, but it’s still monstrously heavy.
Oh, and by the second track nothing as relented. No, instead Looking for an Answer has only kicked up the grind. “La Carne del Leviatán” keeps the steam rolling with a sharp, vicious two-minute blaster that takes makes some time for a solo and some old-school death metal worship. Meanwhile, the follow-up track “Sol Negro” is a pure blaster.
Looking for an Answer keep things simple and familiar. The band doesn’t branch much on Dios Carne. And if anything, they’re more pissed off than ever. Track after track is a burner—pure adrenaline madness. “Autofajia” is on as I write this and it sounds like my speakers are going to blow out with all the grinding madness that’s being conjured up. It’s a truly intense album that barely relents. But it distinctively does at once point.
“Muerete Lenta” is something a little different from Looking for an Answer. The track is slower, and doomier. It leaves time for meditation as the band conjures up an eight-minute-forty-second slice of heaviness. There’s nothing grinding or death-infused about it. Every time it feels like it’s going to pick up it opts again for the slower, heavier riff. It’s an interesting piece but it carries on a bit too long, especially as the ending is a lot of feedback that doesn’t build to much.
Dios Carne is one of the most sinister offerings from Looking for an Answer yet. It’s what you’d expect from a veteran band of the genre. And their sound hasn’t dulled one bit. The grind is incredibly good, though I’ll admit, at first I wasn’t taken with this album. And I’m blaming that on shitty headphones. Get grinding on this as soon as you can.
Score: 9/10
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ak_E7r4uqvM[/youtube]
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