UMUR
"Sexual Mutilation" is the second demo recording by Swedish death metal act Grave. The demo was independently released in February 1989. It´s the successor to the September 1988 "Sick Disgust Eternal" demo. Only one of the five tracks ("Deformed") from the 18:49 minutes long demo made it unto Grave´s 1991 debut full-length studio album "Into the Grave" (Century Media Records, August 1991). "Morbid Way to Die" would however resurface on Grave´s second full-length studio album "You'll Never See..." (Century Media Records, May 1992).
Stylistically the material on "Sexual Mutilation" continues the brutal and aggressive death metal style of the "Sick Disgust Eternal" demo, which isn´t surprising as it was recorded only 5 months after the first demo, but Grave had obviously already found a core style they felt worked. Compared to the first demo the sound production on "Sexual Mutilation" is a bit more unpolished and raw. It´s not an issue as the production still suits the rawness of the material well, but if I have to make one complaint, it would be that the vocals aren´t as effectful or well performed here as they were on the first demo. They are pretty varied though with both low growling, tortured semi-growling, and high pitched screaming. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.