ELECTROCUTION — Inside the Unreal (review)

ELECTROCUTION — Inside the Unreal album cover

Album · 1993 · Death Metal

3/5 · 2012-07-05
UMUR

"Inside the Unreal" is the debut full-length studio album by Italian death metal act Electrocution. The album was originally released through Contempo Records in 1993. "Inside the Unreal" was the sole album release by Electrocution and apparently a "classic" album on the Italian death metal scene of the early nineties. Or at least "classic" enough for Goregorecords to release the album in April 2012 in a remastered limited edition CD form.

The music on the album is a pretty standard type US influenced death metal. It´s brutal allright and technically well played too but the sound production isn´t very exciting (I´m listening to the remaster). Especially the "clicky" bass drums sound powerless and a sound like that is bound to bring my rating down. The fact that the tracks aren´t exactly of the type that stand out from each other isn´t a plus either. When that is said the band bring some ideas into the mix that make the album worth a listen. Especially when they toy around with technical death metal elements that lead my thoughts towards Atheist my attention is caught. That is a minor part of their sound on "Inside the Unreal" though. Predominantly this is pretty straight sounding US influenced death metal.

...so while "Inside the Unreal" isn´t as such as bad quality death metal album it´s a fairly standard one that doesn´t really stand out from the pack. The kind that flooded the market in those years and eventually meant the demise of the death metal boom of the early nineties. I´ll play fair and hand out a 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating.

more than 2 years ago
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adg211288 wrote:

more than 2 years ago

I've seen that too, my comment was more based on that when I was doing my review, in which although I ultimately gave 4 stars to the album, was difficult to write because the album failed to stand out in any way other than simply being solid death metal. I meant that if I'd heard more OSDM may rating may have been a 3.5, which it very nearly was except I couldn't find anything inherently wrong with it to justify such a deduction. Of course it also may have been higher as well, impossible to say.

UMUR wrote:

more than 2 years ago

They are entitled to their opinion, but I stand by mine. This is not what I call an elite OSDM release and I´ve heard plenty of albums in this vein, both back then and now. That doesn´t mean it´s not any good of course. It´s an enjoyable album no doubt about that. I have to dispute that 1993 was still early when it came to death metal though. This is around the time the scene slowly began it´s decline being pushed in the background by the rising black metal scene. I remember it like it was yesterday. So sad.

Wilytank wrote:

more than 2 years ago

Keeping frivolous technicality out of music and maintaining a tried and true approach worked for a lot of bands back in these years. Though this was still 1993, which was still fairly early as far as the 90's wave goes. If an album like this was released ten years later, maybe it would be a case of a band beating a dead horse, but that would depend on how good the music is.

Wilytank wrote:

more than 2 years ago

I've just seen a lot of OSDM fans call albums like this criminally under-appreciated gems and the like.

UMUR wrote:

more than 2 years ago

...what are you trying to say Liam?

Wilytank wrote:

more than 2 years ago

I'm not so sure about that. I like a good enough number of old school death metal bands that I listen to. Obituary's first, Immolation, Incantation, Deicide's Legion...

UMUR wrote:

more than 2 years ago

Maybe :-)

adg211288 wrote:

more than 2 years ago

I enjoyed this album, but maybe if I'd heard as much of this kind of death metal as you have my score would have been lower.