(On the day of its release we’re premiering a debut EP by the Chicago death metal band Trail of Entrails, and Christopher Luedtke provides the introduction.)
If there’s one thing that’s more than established about death metal at this moment it’s the enduring spirit and dedication to the riff. The genre might have slowed down in the mid-2000s up until the mid/late 2010s but there was never an all-out cease and desist for the genre. Like many genres, there are always dedicated people keeping it alive and death metal is seeing quite the heyday again. And once again, a new player has entered the arena.
Trail of Entrails are the latest death metal dealers out of Chicago, IL. The band consists of Robb Exhumed (guitar/vocals; Mutilate, Waifu), Zacky Bifid (guitar/vocals; Bifid Corpse, Coffinfeeder), and Alex Entrails (drums; Barrier). Having already played their first live show (check out the footage below), the band is here ready to unleash their debut EP Rot In The Cellar.
Coming out swinging with three tracks, Trail of Entrails play a kind of confrontational death metal. Something in the vein of Dying Fetus, Cannibal Corpse, or Stabbed. The EP kicks off with “Initiate the Siege”, which opens with a chugging riff and then descends into a punchy drive. It’s a track that blends plenty of harsh riffage with furious moshy breakdowns.
“Hard Yard” follows by upping the intensity. The riffage is high energy and very thrashy. The track shifts into a breakdown a minute in. Then the mood switches to a sludgy, trudgy push with pinch harmonics. It’s straight fighting music.
The last track is “Rot in the Cellar.” Saving the rawest for last, the track starts out on the slower end and gradually builds. Taking time to steep in heaviness, it indulges some caveman moments before picking up the pace and building the blast. It shifts into a thrashy death metal and builds into a shredding solo. And the track wraps with some punching melodic riffage before signing off.
If you like riffs, mosh — just death metal in general — Trail of Entrails has your card. Their debut EP Rot in the Cellar is a promising and punishing slice of death metal from some Chicago vets. Again if you’re into stuff like Dying Fetus, Cannibal Corpse, and Stabbed, then Trail of Entrails should already be in your ears.
https://trailofentrails.bandcamp.com/album/rot-in-the-cellar-2