Review by Sandre the Giant
I covered Romanian death metallers Rotheads back in 2018 when they released their debut ‘Sewer Fiends’ record, and the band have really begun to grow into themselves over the past few years. Their newest effort, ‘Slither in Slime’, is out now through Memento Mori and looks to continue their building, fetid legacy.
‘Vampyric Inbreeding’ has a nice little creepy intro section before it all dissolves into waves of old school Swedish death riffs and guttural roars. The eerie melodic streak is still in full force, probably even more so now as it wrestles with the sludgy brutality for supremacy. ‘Lost in the Cemtery Gardens’ is a melodic powerhouse to start, before the world of nasty death metal fury swallows it up. ‘Slither in Slime’ definitely seems to be the record where Rotheads turn their fetid soup of potential into something magnificent in conception. ‘Gut Mauled’ is a mammoth undertaking of old school death/doom like Autopsy’s slower masterpieces; lumbering riffs crash against a lurking bass and subtle drums while the strange clean guitar notes at the start and appearing throughout ‘Gore Coffin’ are unsettling to say the least.
I mentioned the evident Finnish death metal influences that pervaded throughout their debut record, and Rotheads haven’t lost any of that with early Amorphis joining the more obvious Demigod worship. There’s a lot of classic Scandinavian influences (Grave on the expansive and grim ‘Spectral Visitations’), but Rotheads are carving their own name into the genre with bloodied, rusted blade. Closer ‘Dragged Through Existence’ finally reveals to me the missing puzzle of my review, when you sudden sense that the whole record has been a haunting, almost cinematic experience leading up to this coup de grace of crushing death metal.
‘Slither in Slime’ is a record that seems superficial and straightforward before you dive in, but unwraps its complexities and nuances with each track until you are left drained and bewildered. Rotheads are pushing a form of death metal that truly feels immersive, eldritch and ancient yet never relying on samples or interludes to get that across. Mournful soloing and a melancholic atmosphere lies across everything they touch, and it makes ‘Slither in Slime’ all the more special to me. Majestic.
https://www.facebook.com/rotheads/
https://rotheads.bandcamp.com/
The Killchain 