Holocausto Cannibal – Crueza Ferina (Dang Son Portuguese Groove Grind)

 

Lot let’s see if Facebook let’s me promote this one. I didn’t even look at the band name at first, thinking it was some vegan post-hardcore thing that tries to shock by showing real animal violence, but then I was like, oh, wait, nah this is like some Portuguese grind or something and I’m pretty sure they’re actually promoting BBQ culture, lol. Holocausto Canibal are one of the most respected, and longest-grinding bands of Portugal, presenting the usual aesthetic of gore and blood and all of that. You can scope any of their previous cover art to get the idea. That’s why I realized with Crueza Ferina that they were likely doing things a bit differently. I was one, correct, and two, dang son does this work well.

   

Up to now, Holocausto Canibal has largely followed the path of grind: samples, rotten riffs (in the figurative sense), you know the gore. Namely, it fit right in there and wasn’t necessarily something to miss or remember. Crueza Ferina is much different. The sound is like a combination of earlier work, but more finely produced with a tendency towards groove rather than pound. At times this leads to repetitive passages, but they stick like coagulated blood and seep into the skin in the most enjoyable of ways. In my opinion this is probably their best work to date and, ahem, probably the direction they should keep going. The final track is the definite winner, almost to the extent that it overshadows the rest of the album, yet the whole is enjoyable even without its inclusion.

 

Holocausto Canibal Official Facebook

Written by Stanley, Devourer of Souls

Holocausto Canibal – Crueza Fernina
Larvae Records, Selfmadegod Records, Xaninho Discos

Cover Photography: Rui Pires
4.5 / 5