UMUR
"Sex. Violence. Death." is the 2nd full-length studio album by US, Florida based death metal act Lowbrow. The album was released through Crook'd in 2001. It´s the successor to "Victims at Play" from 1999. It would be the band´s last album before disbanding in 2002. There´s been one lineup change since the debut album as bassist Scott Carino has been replaced by Richard Bateman.
Lowbrow was formed after guitarist Allen West was fired from Six Feet Under by Chris Barnes in 1997. His involvement with Obituary had also ended in 1997 after the collaps of that act (he would return to Obituary for a shorter stint when they reunited). West teamed up with four other guys who have played with, among others, Death, Nasty Savage, Massacre and Fester to form Lowbrow.
Stylistically the material on "Sex. Violence. Death." continues in the brick heavy groove laden death metal style of "Victims at Play". The Obituary influence is strong as well as references to Six Feet Under and also artists like Catastrophic and Pyrexia. It´s relatively simple, groove oriented death metal, delivered with great energy, aggression, and passion. Lead vocalist Rich Hornberger has a strong and commanding growling delivery. There isn´t much variation between tracks, and as a result the album does become a little one-dimensional along the way (which is similar to the way the debut felt). It´s not a major issue on a release of this type though, and while the album plays I can´t stop banging my head and smashing random things in my house...that´s the kind of emotions this release awakes in me and I would love to have seen Lowbrow live, which is where I suspect their music would be presented in the best way.
"Sex. Violence. Death." features a powerful, raw, and brutal sounding production job, which suits the aggression and heavy nature of the material perfectly. So upon conclusion this may not be the most innovative nor the most original sounding death metal release, but the brutality, the aggression, and the heavy grooves make this more than a worthwhile listen and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.