Zombie Inc. – A Dreadful Disease (Massacre Records)
Sunday, 24th March 2013
Zombies have long been a point of discussion in metal, often serving as a fail-safe lyrical reference point for bands who aren’t into pouring out their feelings. It’s a very limited subject, of course, for there’s only so many ways one can talk about zombies and their eventual takeover of earth (re: The Walking Dead), but like a good comfort food (uh, how about Chex Mix?), zombies and death metal feels right. (Still waiting on a power metal band to give this topic a go, regardless of how incredibly lame it sound.)
Austrian based Zombie Inc. and their debut A Dreadful Disease is exactly as advertised – it’s old-school, frothy, and brutal, with former Pungent Stench lead singer Martin Schirenc out front. The usual nods to early 90’s Entombed and Grave are made, along with cross-referencing vintage Autopsy and Death. It’s about as telegraphed and predictable of a release as you’ll find this year, save for the fact that a lot of these songs are quite infectious.
Schirenc, in fact, might be the coolest thing about Zombie Inc. His vocals are loaded with personality, able to convey the juvenile subject matter in convincing fashion. He’s almost like a news reporter broadcasting the onset of the living dead, and when the chugs kick in on “Deathtribe Sinister,” it’s time take to cover and hide the children. The prerequisite horror samples accompany opener “The Chaosbreed” and the excellent “Challenge of the Undead,” which rolls into a rampaging stomp, evoking visions of the living stomping over lifeless undead bodies. Surely you get the picture.
Entering the death metal fray at pretty much the worse time possible thanks to the current early 90’s retro movement, Zombie Inc. can thank their fun lyrical angle and Schirenc for giving themselves at least a fighting chance in this landscape. If anything, A Dreadful Disease is worth checking out because it gives a fresh angle to a very stale…and dead topic. Tee-hee.
(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)
