Review: “Sewer King, King Of The Sewer” by Krocophile

It’s crazy how time flies when you’re down by the swamp isn’t it? One minute you’re eyeing up lunch and the next ten months have flown by and you’re wondering just what happened. 2023 saw Lansing Michigan natives Krocophile fulfilled their mission of “Reptilians writing slam for our fellow reptilians“ with their sophomore EP “Slamzilla: The Returning“ and everything looked like it was going according to plan. However after an artwork reveal and a single from their third record “Sewer King, King Of The Sewer” in August 2024 things went pear shaped with the exit of a guitarist and a bassist due to creative differences. The wait is now officially over and so adorned by artwork from Aghy Purakusuma (Stillbirth, Pure Wrath, Reduced), the record was released by Jakarta, Indonesia based label Brutal Mind not so long ago. It’s been almost a decade of destruction for these beasts so we’re expecting more themes of Reptiles, Gore, Bestiality and Humour with Brutal Slamming Death Metal and perhaps just a hint of Carolina Reaper based hot sauce…

Dinosaurs are cool. If they weren’t we wouldn’t be on the 57th entry in the Jurassic Park saga and there would be no such thing as Godzilla, so if you don’t like the aesthetic it’s time to stop reading. The world descends into Anime chaos during a band acid trip, Death Groove riffs shattering the illusion as the Slamzilla roars and  “Degenerate” rears its ugly head. Some claim that there are no lyrics in Slam but the lyric sheet attached to this crushing tune to help you breathe more easily proves otherwise, the vocalists throat becoming an instrument in its own right as it plays out. Burning the ear canals this one might not be as all out heavy as you might expect based on the prior convictions of this band however the groove is undeniably good and the vocals are more than enough to shred the larynx of any pretender to their crown. Adding some pitch harmonics to the riffage and increasing the intensity of the rhythmic pounding “Ambush Predator” goes on to depict the death roll of an alligator, the feeding technique they use to dismember their victim. A tale of murderous intent, it thrashes as it burns, the tight rhythms designed for mosh pit madness with their sinister and menacing approach. Want blast beats to put an evil grin on the face of Kevin Talley? “Sewer King” has bursts of them alongside the Death Groove onslaught, summoning you to worship the sewer king in some nasty occult ritual. It’s something of a cliché but this track is very much the push that makes you want to move, nodding your head on the first listen and wanting to get into the mosh pit by the second of third. The chord progressions are slick, the tempo changes subtle and the vocals so damn caustic they may well trigger a brain haemorrhage but we simply don’t care because this is as much fun as you can have without getting involved in a chainsaw accident.

The restless and relentless nature of the beast doesn’t stop there either with the vicious “Incubator” a classic tale of low budget science fiction horror movies. Sonic riff abrasions for days and percussive skull battering’s for weeks it’s enough to put you in hospital on its own. The only guest vocal appearance on the record is on “Snake Pit” which features Mats Funderud of Kraanium which feels like it must be a source of inspiration for the band as they crank it up and thrown in a couple of samples to add a spice that’s nice. Funderud fights fire with fire, a great match for the Slamzilla himself as the two get ferocious in each others faces, spiting and snarling as the bass rumbles and the tectonic plates start to shift. Completing the collection with neck snapping brutality “C.R.U.D.” (Cannibalistic Reptilianoid Underground Dweller) demonstrates that useless brackets in song titles weren’t just a thing of the 90’s. We’ll save the explanation of that for another date and instead concentrate on this near six minute monster of a track which has on its some of the most vicious vocals you’re likely to hear. Ever. It’s a Slam dunk that has a false ending at the half way point before bringing it back with punishing staccato riff breaks and hammering the point home in style. Need a record that you can just disengage your brain and enjoy listening to for what it is? That’s this record. Save the whining about relationships for another day and chill out to some broke snapping entertainment [7.5/10]

Track Listing

1. Degenerate
2. Ambush Predator
3. Sewer King
4. Incubator
5. Snake Pit (ft. Mats Funderud of Kraanium)
6. C.R.U.D. (Cannibalistic Reptilianoid Underground Dweller)

“Sewer King, King Of The Sewer” by Krocophile is out 31st May 2025 and is available over at bandcamp.