Review: “The Malady” by Feed Them Death

Venting his spleen since 2017, mastermind Void has resurrected his Death Grind act Feed Them Death three years after their critically acclaimed second album “Negative” for another dance macabre around the ballroom of Death, Politics and Social Issues. Titled “The Malady” the new album, the bands third in all, was recorded by Jake Saunders at Clang Studios before being mixed and mastered Giorgio Barroccu (Ultio, Haternal, Derhead) and the diversity of the offering is intriguing. Describing their sound as “Negative Anti-Music for Anti-Positivist Thinkers“, the project has long been hailed as both eclectic and eccentric, often fusing together Grindcore, Death Metal, D-beat, Sludge, 80’s Crust-Punk, Thrashcore and Noise Rock with a deconstructed and improvisational jazz sensibility. If you can’t fathom what that sounds like, perhaps its more easily described as fast, dissonant and chaotic anti-music. As if the sonic diversity wasn’t enough the lyrical message utilizes a vast array of counter-cultural references to engage the discerning listener in a fierce critique of the world around us. Perhaps referencing George Orwell’s 1984 or parables of Sisyphus and Icarus they serve to reflect upon universals such as hate, guilt or human frailty, towards a possible redemption offered by the power of individuality and the freedom of thought… with a middle finger of intelligence based loosely on a Hardcore Punk ethos.

While not a solo project, Void handles lyrics, vocals, bass, lo-fi guitars, noise and piano in the work of Feed Them Death while using guitarist DaviDeath and drummer Nige to help bring his nightmarish visions to life. The gates of Hell itself open with “Above All…“, a rampaging tornado of Grindcore with Hardcore Punk backing vocals, blistering drums and scalding vicious unclean vocals spearheading the attack. It’s just the tip of the iceberg with “Two Minutes Hate” following suit seconds later, a cut with a melancholia to it despite its ridiculously high energy. The juxtaposition between two worlds, it feels like being pulled apart by wild horses in the medieval act of disruption, as the rich melody cuts against the feral noise. Fortunately “Autopsy” is more straightforward, blending Grindcore with Hardcore Punk for a neck snapping affair that rattles the brains with violent turbulence. Hammering the nails into the coffin at lightning speed, drummer Nige sets the tempo of the damned for this one and the others simply hold onto their hats, playing along as fast as they can as if throwing their bullets in the fire and running like hell.

Sounding like a bog dwelling monster Void gives his most vicious vocal performance on “Deleterious“, a savage obliteration of the ear canals that has some delicious Death Metal flirtations. While they’re not at the forefront of the mix the backing vocals feel like Jello Biafra is delivering them, the crushing guitars in the slower finale a punishingly heavy moment. What’s great about the album is while it pays to expect the unexpected, there is absolutely no foretelling of what that might sound like. A churning bassline and almost Botch inspired riffs gives “Them, The Guiltless” an entirely different approach, the only continuity from the earlier tracks being the brutal vocals. Even then there are moments that sound like Napalm Death in their prime, such is the quirky nature of this sonic abomination.

If you haven’t run from the building screaming for the men in white coats to take you to the asylum just yet, the album is split clean in half by “D.E.A.T.H.“, a song that flirts with Post-Hardcore inspired Black Metal melodies as it builds with delicate piano in emotive fashion. A distorted spoken word gives rise to some almost Jazz inspired sounds, the trio getting truly creative as they express themselves before a thunderous moment as the guitars come crashing down with brutal vocals as if Void has taken a drill to the head in an act of Trephination. After that burst of sonic ecstasy title track “The Malady” returns to the anvil heavy Death grind of the earlier cuts, the kind of thing that they use in Guantanamo Bay to keep the prisoners sleep deprived. It’s more straightforward nature helps break up the chaos with something that feels less like walking across shifting sands, which isn’t to say its not without nuance. There is still plenty going on here with blast beats, screaming and off kilter riffs galore.

After Death comes Hardcore Punk with “Stygian Tide” finding Feed Them Death with their creative juices flowing. If it wasn’t for the breakneck speed of the sonic assault on the senses there is an eerie and almost haunting quality to this one, as if the soundscape to something wicked approaching on the horizon. Some of these cuts sound like they were recorded live on the floor and “Panopticism II” is a prime example, its raw and aggressive qualities choking off the air supply as they go for the throat. The drums are heavy in the mix and act as the driving force, the feral vocals decimating the weak and thinning the herd as they summon demons to bring plague and pestilence to this land and yet, it sounds sombre and sobering at the same time. Blast beats? Nige delivers them like a killing machine as “Two More Minutes” wipes the floor with any pretender to the throne before “…And So Below” brings down the bloodstained curtain on the whole shambolic affair. Menacing and sinister with a false ending it’s not the hero you wanted but the one you deserved as it tears off another chunk of humanity [7/10]

Track Listing

1. Above All…
2. Two Minutes Hate
3. Autopsy
4. Deleterious
5. Them, The Guiltless
6. D.E.A.T.H.
7. The Malady
8. Stygian Tide
9. Panopticism II
10. Two More Minutes
11. …And So Below

“The Malady” by Feed Them Death is out 20th June 2024 via Brucia Records and is available over at bandcamp