Afterbirth - Four Dimensional Flesh ALBUM REVIEW

Formed in 1993, New York's Afterbirth is not a newcomer to the brutal death metal scene. Despite its longevity, Afterbirth's discography is surprisingly short; consisting only of a tape and an EP in the 90's, an LP in 2017, and in 2020 the latest release Four Dimensional Flesh. Moving away from its slamming roots and towards a proggier territory, Four Dimensional Flesh is one of my favourite 2020 releases in extreme music. If anything, this album leaves me anxious for further releases of this unexpectedly ambitious project.

 

After a humble life early in the nineties, it took 23 years for Afterbirth to come back to life. But don't be mistaken: there's no zombie-ish spooks in this release. In fact, Afterbirth appears to go up to space and across dimensions with this effort. The production is very sparse and chambered, cavernous as the cool kids in the scene would say. I consider this production choice to be very effective, because it gives the album a vague, spacey ambience without losing any of its sheer speed and brutality. Adding up to the aforementioned vibe are the slow and mellow passages spread out through the album; these serve as effective or even charming breaks in between the more abrasive and musically rich heaviness. Four Dimensional Flesh is an exquisite display of musicianship that is rare to come by these days, and it surprises me that this band's output is so small. It manages to be cerebral and ethereal without the pretentiousness that often follows. I've seen complaints about the allegedly fart-like vocal performance, but to be honest I don't mind them at all. But I have to ask, if you care about vocals what are you even doing listening to brutal death metal?

 

Clocking in at roughly 35 minutes of duration, Four Dimensional Flesh is a relatively short release for prog standards, being more in line with previous brutal death metal releases. This might be good news for the listeners whom are... short of attention. In fact, I equate Four Dimensional Flesh's runtime to a gentle pet in one's attention span. Regardless of any caress and cuddling, I confess I ended up yearning for more as soon as the record was over. This is widely regarded as a good sign. And considering the circumstances, I have to agree.

 

Verdict: Buy it on vinyl