It’s Wednesday and Wednesdays suck, so let’s grind it out with the album premiere of Revenant by Human Cull.
Happy halfway point. You've made it this far, you’re almost there. You might be used to seeing this column on Monday, and originally this was written for an intended Monday publication. But some people get holidays. I don't know what that’s like but I hope you had a good one. Let’s grind out the rest of this week.
UK grinders Human Cull have been blasting out splits, demos and albums since 2011. You might recognize them from their splits with Oblivionized or Homokla. Maybe, like me, you first heard them when they put out Stillborn Nation in 2014, a great grinder of a record. Well, they’re back with Revenant and sounding even more intense.
You’ll notice immediately that while Revenant sounds much more cleaned up than Stillborn Nation, it’s still raw as hell and a big step up in aggression. The flow and writing are tighter this time around and the record grabs you by the neck immediately. “Harnessing Atrocity” opens everything with a bloodcurdling scream, a quick piece of melody and then goes blasting for a full forty-seconds, with only a slight break. It’s like a marriage of Nasum and Napalm Death.
Like a lot of grindcore bands, Human Cull doesn’t deviate from blasting. What they do walk a fine line between is hardcore/punk influences and death metal. They have a lot of moments where they dabble in both but never commit to one or the other. I’d argue the record has more punk leanings, as showcased in songs like “Unmake the Graves” or “Never Smile.” But other tracks like “The Muzzle” certainly lean more towards a death metal stance, verging on thrash at times. And you know what? Even that track has a lot of punk leanings.
Sound speculation aside, Revenant is simply an exciting record. Clocking in at about eighteen-minutes, the record never feels dull. Human Cull always manage to tighten their grip just enough song to song, and change things up often enough that the album just flies by. “Prying Eyes” keeps things heavy as hell while other tracks like “The Worms of God” are the equivalent of twenty cans of Red Bull.
Bottom line, this is a grindcore album for grind-freaks like myself. If you’re new to Human Cull’s body of work, you’re coming in at the right time. Revenant is a blast beat paradise that will have you playing it over and over and over again, with a smile on your face. Cheers, you UK grinding mad men. If you haven’t hit the play button on the stream, now would be a good time to get grinding on that.
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