Ravenous, The - Three on a Meathook mCD Review

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2005-05-01 : DAVE DEATH
Stop gap release from the death metal "supergroup". The line up of this band needs no introduction here, because the chances are that if you are reading this then you are gonna know the script. Anyway back to the music. This e.p has got a far cleaner production than the debut, decide for yourself whether this is a good or bad thing. This is one of those albums which is going to grab you and shake you violently until you are just a mass of bloody pulp, and not a blast beat on it! Although it doesn't need them because there is so much going on that you won't miss them. A mix of slower, more "doom" laden elements give this release a more varied approach in the vein of the absolutely crushing "Keep My Grave Open" from the first album.Basically, gore fans are gonna fucking love this, older ones like me especially who are into the older sound of the likes of the mighty ABSCESS, AUTOPSY, NECROPHAGIA, but that was always going to be the case with Reifert and his two guitarists on board. The vocals are absolutely fucking sick, with the screeching from Killjoy and more low end grunting and growling from Reifert. A good release anyway, although it is not as sick as the newest album but shreds none the less. Beg,steal,lie or borrow to get this blast of fetid air because it really is quite special. 9/10!
2003-07-25 : Anonymous Coward
The Ravenous have always been a band I’ve wanted to like. The gross imagery, nasty song titles and the idea of mixing gore with grooving old school death metal is quite good. Whenever I’ve played their earlier material, however, I’ve never been that impressed. The music has always sounded dirty and evil, but the production has been sort of poor, the songs less than interesting, and the overall result has been quite bland.

On the group’s Three on a Meathook EP, very little has changed. Three of the four songs on the album move along at a dull mid-paced clip, none of them ever really trying to do anything new or interesting. By the last song, The Ravenous decide to change things a tiny bit by slowing down, adding weird horror movie type samples and dragging out “Apocalyptic Paranoia” as if it were a doom song. This is a refreshing change.
2002-12-12 : Krozza : Link
"What's the matter? Don't like Dog anymore?" A movie sample that opens up 'Apocalyptic Paranoia', the final track on this new 4 song EP from The Ravenous should give you a good idea as to where this one resides lyrically and thematically. Then again, when you've got your resident gore-fiends in Killjoy (Necrophagia, Eibon, Wurdulak, Gorelord, Cabal) and Chris Reifert (Autopsy & Abcess) in the band, such content shouldn't surprise.
The Ravenous is a fun little project, err Band that was put together a couple of years ago by Killjoy. This guy is so full of sick and twisted ideas, many of them just don't fit the Necrophagia mould – hence the number of acts he now performs in. The Ravenous is one act that allows his full on old-school death metal tendencies to shine through. The teaming of him and Chris Reifert is pure genius – the Ex-Autposy, now Abcess vocalist/drummer resides in the exact headspace as Killjoy. For all the Death/Gore fans, it's a combination that just had to happen. Add Dan Lilker (Brutal Truth, SOD, Hemlock, Redrum, Nuclear Assault, etc) and the current Abcess guitar duo of Clint Bower and Danny Coralles and things get even more ugly.
'Three on a Meathook' is a little four-track taster EP released by US Cult label 'Red Stream', a follow up the debut of 2000 'Assembled in Blasphemy'. The current line listed is about to head into the studio to record a second full length tentatively entitled 'Blood Delirium'. The four tracks here are gore drenched old school death metal. This is raw, sick and twisted shit that rolls on by with the greatest of listening ease. The vocals of Killjoy and Chris are well known in this genre, and true to form they spit and belch out their venom with gusto on the four tracks contained here. Musically it's all very simplistic riffing, showing off a dirty punk, Motorhead vibe particularly on the second track 'I Drink Your Blood'. The aforementioned 'Apocalyptic Paranoia' slows things down a little with a heavy guitar dirge opening up the track whilst being peppered with interesting and quite disturbing movie samples. Killjoy's vocals are at his most vomitous on this track. The track speeds up mid-song with a wild solo trade off between Bower and Coralles.
Lyrically and thematically, this is all very tongue in cheek for me, a bit of a laugh and something that I can't take too seriously. Necrophagia and Abcess also do the some thing for me – if it's meant to disturb and revolt (and maybe I'm a bit desensitized to this after 25 years of metal listening), then it doesn’t work. I find all a bit a laugh really. I know Killjoy is total necro/gore/zombie obsessed, but really, am I meant to be cowering in fear at what is put down on paper in his lyrics? They're just horror stories aren't they? I like a good horror story... but I need the visual and the tension to build to be truly disturbed. This is more like novelty value for me.
That aside (and it's only my opinion), The Ravenous are an interesting band to watch – the raw, fast old school death metal sound is really nailed here – aided by a dirty, low end production, it offers a great authentic vibe. Looking out for the next full length.