Crimson Thorn

Item: Unearthed
Author: Michael Tulloch

Unearthed

(1994)

Reviewed by Michael Tulloch

Discogs Apple Music TIDAL

Label Atomic RecordsThe LighthouseJune 1996

death metal grindcore thrash metal

This is a project I've been waiting to sink my teeth into for some time-Crimson Thorn's debut. Style? With a name like Crimson Thorn, take a wild guess... Time's up! Alex Trebek says, "What is Death/grind metal?" There are no acoustic guitars here, so it's not Nonexistent: The Lost Demo. And it's not special effects laden, like Bathory, nor ridiculously repetitive like Napalm Death. With short, rhythmic melodic phrases, blast beats galore, and two kinds of growls (one deep, another higher-pitched like an animal), they carve out their own semi-original sound.

"Unearthed" starts the project off with some weird effects, riffs, and a style similar to Living Sacrifice-almost too similar. But like most death-metal projects, this one grows on you, and the rest of the album gets better. Roaring through next is "Activate Decay," with a spooky talk-intro and lots of riffs. The most interesting thing here is the creativity of the drummer in incorporating power metal, thrash, and hardcore beats into his style.

"Comatose" features the only slow intro on the whole release, with soft and eerie guitar chimes over a meandering bass line. When the heavier stuff shatters this mood, it becomes very engaging. This and "Defaced" have a classical/technical influence written all over them, resulting in two songs different than the norm for this genre. Another standout is "Malignant Masters," a broadside to liberal academia, which shows the band's political astuteness. The lyrics of these two songs, however, struck me as condemnatory: "Identities drawn, but you never look beyond/Your filthy blackened heart," from "Comatose," and "Defaced-wake up you fools," from "Defaced."

The next song, "Imminent Wrath" seemed to blow by me without catching my attention and the last song, "No Exceptions," falls apart around the chorus, with its extraneous blast beats-though it has a very catchy verse lick.

Overall, there aren't any completely awful songs, but there aren't many completely good ones, either. "Comatose" and "Defaced" stand out musically. Lyrically, they cover basic Christian concepts, aggressively seeking to engage the nonbeliever, or challenge the believer. I don't think it's the best example of death/grind out there, but in terms of quality lyrics and quality songs, you could do a whole lot worse. So go ahead and give it a listen; it just might convict you.