UMUR
"Horrors in a Retarded Mind" is the second demo recording by Dutch death metal act Gorefest. The demo was independently released in September 1990. It´s the second out of two demos (the first being the December 1989 "Tangled In Gore" demo) Gorefest recorded and released before they were signed by the Foundation 2000 label for the release of their 1991 debut full-length studio album "Mindloss". All four tracks from the "Horrors in a Retarded Mind" would eventually be re-recorded and included on "Mindloss".
Fast forward ten months from the release of the "Tangled In Gore" demo and Gorefest have become considerably darker, heavier, and more brutal, and they have developed their sound to become more unique compared to the Pestilence influenced sound of "Tangled In Gore". Like most early death metal recordings "Horrors in a Retarded Mind" still features a few thrash metal elements, but this is a much more pure death metal recording than the preceding demo release. It´s not only the instrumental part of the music which has gotten heavier and more brutal, it´s also the vocals by Jan-Chris de Koeijer, which are now deeper brutal growling (any comparisons to Martin van Drunen are now gone). Tracks like "Confessions of a Serial Killer" and "Horrors in a Retarded Mind" are absolutely crushingly brutal old school death metal tracks, which should satisfy most fans of the genre.
Like "Tangled In Gore", "Horrors in a Retarded Mind" was also recorded at Totem Studios, Bleiswijk, Netherlands, and features a professional studio demo production. It´s a high quality demo release through and through. Strong musicianship, effective and memorable songwriting, and as mentioned a powerful, raw, and professional sounding production job, which perfectly suits the music. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.