Review: Mangled Carpenter – Between Blood and Silence
By now, I would guess that most Christian death metal fans are no stranger to Mangled Carpenter. Usually categorized as a death/grind hybrid band, there’s always been something a bit eccentric about their sound that has made the band stand out from the pack, a sound that blends grind, industrial, and brutal death metal all into one package. They’re proof that Broken Curfew Records is becoming something of a Christian version of a record label like 20 Buck Spin, putting out some seriously heavy-hitting modern death metal acts like Come To Pass, Dehumanize, Divine Incision, and King’s Hammer.
The band’s latest EP, Between Blood and Silence, could be the heaviest effort by the band yet. Adorned with gruesome cover art that looks like it could have been on a Mortician record, this EP wastes absolutely zero time in blowing your head clean off with the title track’s searing roars and high-pitched manic shrieks all slamming into your ears in sync with the industrial-strength guitar and blasting drums. But it doesn’t take long to notice that there’s something a little different afoot here, and my ears can’t ignore it – with Between Blood and Silence, Mangled Carpenter lean into the brutal side of deathcore more than ever hinted at before.
That’s not to say this is some kind of cookie-cutter breakdown fest either; in fact, nothing could be further from the truth, and it’s nice to hear a band play this kind of thing without all the chest-thumping tough guy stuff. Frankly, Mangled Carpenter is far too crazy for that. But it’s not a stretch to say that this EP fits nicely alongside the pulverizing deathcore peddled by bands like Voluntary Mortification and Eternal After Death, along with secular bands like Thy Art is Murder in their more formative years.
As I said, the first track hits extremely hard with a brutal death metal attack, but quickly segues into a pile-driving series of crushing breakdown-style riffs. The vocal work on this record demonstrates a big step-up from previous efforts, with Seth Metoyer’s roar being far more menacing, and the high-pitched deathcore-style rasps giving the music a frightening edge. Second track, “Carved,” hits like Impending Doom on steroids. But the highlight of the EP absolutely has to be “The Absence of Light,” a blistering track of screeching guitar squeals and slams that begins with a riff echoing Sarcofago’s infamous “I.N.R.I.” track.
And of course, there’s that Mortification cover track from Christian death metal’s most famous album, Scrolls of the Megilloth – and no, it’s not the title track. Instead, Mangled Carpenter went with what is perhaps my favourite track on that album, “Terminate Damnation.” That track had some of the most intense and frightening roars I’ve still ever heard from a death metal vocalist, so it’s a pretty big job to try and do the song justice, but Mangled Carpenter manage to do pull off a reverent cover of the song while still injecting their own touch into the proceedings, giving the song a more abrasive guitar tone and emphasizing a more venomous, raspy vocal delivery.
The album ends with the track “Short, Sharp, Shock,” which begins with what sounds like a soundbite from one of those old 1920’s/1930’s Disney cartoons, before the track proceeds to stomp its way to the end in a similar way to “Down, Down to Goblin Town” (which made me think of George MacDonald’s The Princess and the Goblin a bit). While in my view, both of these tracks are the weakest on the EP, they definitely serve to remind the listener that Mangled Carpenter’s approach has always had a certain wackiness to it.
Production-wise, I think Between Blood and Silence fits well into the professional, modern style of death metal being peddled by Broken Curfew Records; certainly, there is no muddled 90’s Morrisound-style production on this one, nor is it grungy and raw like one might expect from a Secretion or Morbid Sacrifice record. But in spite of the obviously professional job on here, this EP is distinctly abrasive in tone, with the guitars sounding sizzling and chunky all at the same time.
Lyrically, the band sticks to a strange brew of spiritual commentary and outright bizarre subject matter. “Carved,” for instance, tackles the misuse of Scripture as a weapon to further one’s own ends. But there is a sense in which the band is desperately trying to wake its listeners up from a sort of theological stupor, to make them realize that God is in the silence and not the storm (cf. 1 Kings 19:11-13). It’s a pervading sense of frustration and desperation, but one also laced with resignation. However, Mangled Carpenter (and, it seems, Pulpit Vomit too, which is essentially the same line-up of musicians from what I can tell) have a penchant for taking odd thematic detours, and you’ll get those in full with “Down, Down to Goblin Town” and “Short, Sharp, Shock” for sure.
Mangled Carpenter have made a name for themselves already with previous efforts, but I think that Between Blood and Silence definitely takes everything to the next level. If you’re like me and not the biggest devotee of deathcore, worry not – though Mangled Carpenter have really gone for a brutal deathcore vibe on this one, it works, building around their death metal core heard on previous records, and sounding more insane than ever. Worth checking out.
Oh, and major points go to the drummer/drum programmer Mac Hine for daring to wear a Kittie pullover in the insert picture – cool.
More about the EP can be found out HERE.
For Fans Of: Cattle Decapitation, Voluntary Mortification, Eternal After Death, The Berzerker, Wise as Serpents, Broken Flesh, Thy Art is Murder (early), Aceldama
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