CANNIBAL CORPSE — Butchered at Birth (review)

CANNIBAL CORPSE — Butchered at Birth album cover

Album · 1991 · Death Metal

3/5 · 2011-11-02
J-Man

Less than a year after their controversial and classic debut album put them on the map for death metal listeners worldwide, Cannibal Corpse had already returned with a follow-up album in the form of Butchered at Birth. Every bit as shocking as Eaten Back to Life indeed, Butchered at Birth sports an even more grotesque album cover than its predecessor, along with plenty of gruesome lyrics and crushingly brutal death metal music to satisfy their already rabid fanbase. On the cover of Butchered at Birth you'll see zombies mutilating a once-pregnant woman, removing the fetus from her womb to be placed on a meat hook along with a long line of other (presumably unborn) babies - pleasant, right? Well judging by the controversy this cover stirred up, it's clear that quite a large amount of people didn't think so. The album was originally sold in a generic white slip-on cover that just had the band's logo and the album title, but countries like Germany (once again) went as far as to ban the album outright. Ontario, Canada also mandated that record stores not sell the album to anybody under the age of 18. Although I personally find this idea of censorship and album banning to be absolutely appalling, make no mistake when purchasing Butchered at Birth - this is not a listen for the faint of heart!

The style of brutal death metal on Butchered at Birth is more or less the same thing we heard on Eaten Back to Life. This is very one-dimensional, brutal, and fast-paced death metal with a heavy emphasis on Chris Barnes's deep guttural growls. His growls are even more indecipherable this time around, and I tend to think they sound just a tad more generic - it's not a major issue, but it's worth stating nonetheless. In many regards, Butchered at Birth is more consistent than the debut; all around, this is the more professional and mature of Cannibal Corpse's first two efforts. The production is still thin and 'old-school' as hell, but the musicianship strikes me as much more tight and polished this time around.

Like Eaten Back to Life, Butchered at Birth unfortunately suffers from rather one-dimensional and unremarkable compositions. This is a very fun listen from time to time, but I do usually find myself remembering remarkably little when the CD ends. Cannibal Corpse just weren't masters at writing memorable riffs at this point in their career, and even though tracks like “Covered With Sores” (the highlight of the album) can get stuck in your head, the vast majority of this album isn't all that remarkable. Butchered at Birth is a fun listen for thirty-six minutes, but it doesn't leave any sort of lasting impression on me.

Technically speaking, Butchered at Birth is a notch above Cannibal Corpse's previous effort, but I feel like this album is a bit less charming and memorable Eaten Back to Life. That lack of charm is ultimately made up for by the quality of the musicianship and the energy of the performances, though, and I'd say both albums end up being pretty equal in terms of quality. Butchered at Birth is another 3 star album from Cannibal Corpse in my opinion. The 'classic' status and quality is definitely there, but it's simply too one-dimensional and monotonous to really excite me. Despite my somewhat mixed reaction, Butchered at Birth is still an essential album for most death metal fans and should be regarded as such if you're thinking about giving it a spin.