Cannabis Corpse – Beneath Grow Lights Thou Shall Rise (Tankcrimes)
Friday, 22nd March 2013
A parody of Cannibal Corpse set to the tune of brutal death metal songs about marijuana, Cannabis Corpse proves that not all bands that sing about Mary Jane are lazy and lethargic-sounding. Fact of the matter is, if one didn’t peer at the band’s name or song titles, then it would be easy to peg CC as an atypical American brutal death metal band. Yet Beneath Grow Lights Thou Shall Rise is about the reefer and nothing else, which probably makes the throng of DM heads that enjoy such activities happy…
Nevertheless, the band has some relatively prominent members, including current Municipal Waste bassist Phillip “Land Phil” Hall, who handles bass and guitars here. Recorded at Erik Rutan’s (Hate Eternal, Morbid Angel) Mana Studios, the album has the feel of recent albums from Cannibal Corpse and the like. This gives the band’s crunchy and occasionally technical riffs some extra ammo, especially on songs like “Dead By Bong,” “Immortal Pipes” and “Where the Kind Lives.” (FYI: Those who have long followed Floridian death metal will recognize that these titles are take-offs of classic songs by Morbid Angel, Deicide, and friends)
There’s no real standout moment on Beneath…, although we’ll point to the crunchy riff action of “Blame It On Bud” and maniacal frenzy of the title track as being the moments of note. Also of interest is vocalist Andy “Weedgrinder” Horn who has the patented DM gurgle down-pat. The rest of the performances (and album) is relatively familiar and played-out American death metal.
Cleary, the real intent behind Beneath Grow Lights Thou Shall Rise is have fun with classic death metal and give props to marijuana. Parody bands can only go so far, but speaking in pure musical terms, there’s a lot more to Cannabis Corpse than a bunch of dudes giving mad props to being “blazed-up.”
www.myspace.com/cannibascorpseva
(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)
