UMUR
"Casket Mutilations" is an EP release by US death metal act Massacre. The EP was independently released in September 2022. It´s the second EP release from Massacre in 2022 as they released the "Mythos" in July 2022. "Casket Mutilations" is a bit different from "Mythos" though, as while the latter features all new original tracks, "Casket Mutilations" features two instrumental horror themed intro tracks (created and performed by Rob Reider), a re-recording of "Mutilated" from the 1986 "Aggressive Tyrant" demo, and the new originial composition "Nailed into the Casket".
"Mutilated" was the first track original guitarist Allen West and lead vocalist Kam Lee worked on and completed under the Massacre monicker all the way back in 1985, and considering the heavy and brutal nature of the track (although it wasn´t quite as brutal and a bit more thrashy in its original form), it´s no wonder that Massacre are considered one of the forefathers of death metal. The two horror themed instrumetals are nice little atmosphere enhancing breathers, and "Nailed into the Casket" once again proves that Massacre are not only here to stay but also stay true to their original mid-80s vision of playing thrash infused old school death metal with Kam Lee´s brutal yet intelligible vocals in front. It´s a good quality track and it´s also reasonably memorable.
"Casket Mutilations" features a well sounding production job. Raw, brutal, and detailed enough to hear every instrument and vocal part clearly in the mix. Upon conclusion "Casket Mutilations" is a good quality release from Massacre, and compared to "Mythos" I actually found this one just a tad more interesting. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.