Chewed away at the joints and rotting from the inside from inception the discharge-slimed attack of Montreal, Québec-based death-doomed metalpunk quartet Serpent Corpse refines up to a pro standard here on the band’s debut full-length album, making good on evolving their already unique take on extreme punk tainted death metal classicism. Yielding a crossover-level event that reads authentic on either side looking in ‘Blood Sabbath‘ intertwines two complimentary tongues within its core hybrid, a feat which will read death metal from one point of view and doomed hardcore punk inflected aggression from another with all of it in service to swerve-heavy riffcraft. Not to be mistaken for beginners these folks’ve made thier debut statement appear effortless, a high standard achieved which is easily among the strongest debut LPs of the year thus far.

Serpent Corpse formed as a quartet circa 2020 featuring Montréal-based musicians which most recognizably included guitarist Chris Lacroix (Oath Div. 666, Disembodiment). They’d quickly honed in on a style of extreme metalpunk which is not unheard of within the diverse Quebec underground but nonetheless unique in its voice up front. Their first demo tape (‘Demo‘, 2021) notably had an ear-catching dual rhythm guitar tone, panning a scraping punkish garage rig on one side and a nuclear HM-2 on the other making for a uniquely stated hardcore punk influenced direction from the start. Looking back on that tape now the bounding movement of the band we find today was apparent but there was much more of a metalpunk forward aggression to that first tape which has since translated into an album which has a hardcorish, crusted-up stomp n’ roll to it on some level but strikes upon something far more structured and riff-driven overall.

Though it’d be easy to assume the main even here was ‘old school’ inspired death metal, and that is a larger part of the band’s sound here beyond Serpent Corpse‘s first tape ‘Blood Sabbath‘ is far more interesting for its treatment of death metal adjacent metalpunk, specifically the crust and kicking 90’s hardcore topple of their sound as it meets up with the swinging Celtic Frost influenced momentum of their early 90’s death metal inspiration. To start this is more Mammoth Grinder-esque than it is tangentially related to the death metal inspired crossover you’ll find in the post-Power Trip influenced USDM scenery of today. “Nemesis” is the first truly hard hit of this feeling, an exaggeration of the impact of early Obituary juiced up to that peak circa ’94 standard, giving it legs by walking it back to an earlier death metal trot. The result is decidedly different from say, Gatecreeper‘s second LP, but the same fandom would appreciate this classics-adjacent sphere where metallic hardcore sized gestures help with the hunched over roll of their sound. The peak of this metallic hardcore meets doomed death metal reach is probably “Let the Rats Feed”, a more Swedish death metal sized composition with a melodic mid-song lead and an easier grooved-at mid pace.

The “death metalpunk” feeling of the album and the way each piece rides the fence is satisfying from all angles as we approach “Land of Rot and Misfortune”, essentially a death/doom metal piece which resolves on a thrash metal note. The fact that this all works while generating its own weirding-yet-hard aura is likely thanks to the Patrick McDowall engineered x Plotkinworks mastered sound design of this record which gives plenty of precision to the drumming with what I’d heard as a small clap of reverb on the edge of the kit, lending an analog feeling drum presence which acts as a cauldron for the rest of the band to fill with bones. While I’d enjoyed the less polished juxtaposition of guitar tones/distortion levels on Serpent Corpse‘s demo tape this treatment serves the band’s tightened songcraft to the point that the leap from demo to LP is all-pro and spins incredible well on endless repeat listening sessions. Though I’d always want a bit more acoustic presence or grit on a bass guitar recording this feels blunt, just flabby enough for the guitars to ride upon and present an imposing depth.

“Swallowed Whole by the Abyss” takes the best aspects of Serpent Corpse‘s sound, clarity of diction (vocalist/bassist Andrew Haddad is a standout here) and churning 80’s death metal movement, and essentially recreates the magick of Dream Death‘s debut (by way of ‘Slowly We Rot‘ heft) making for one of the more characteristic, notable events on the full listen for my own taste. The extra point of finesse we find throughout this album sparks in mind here as the flow between pieces, the moment-to-moment groove and the vibe created, is exceptionally strong. The true climax of Side B for my taste comes with the push through “Swallowed Whole by the Abyss” and its doomed sink into “Dreams of Crows”, a point of resolve for that doomed yet thrashing lurch taken within the steadily set peaks on each side of the record.

When steeping myself within with a nowadays ‘old school’ referential death metal record the bar would ideally be set this high, or higher, in terms of a completely considered visual experience (cover art per Lucas Korte), distinct production values, and above all else songs with live and breathe with personality rich defiance and detestation. There isn’t a ruthless thread of existential dread case in excess here but the morbidity, the ugly stench and kick of classic death metal does lead the charge overall without losing the ‘Realm of Chaos‘-era metalpunk cut one would want from this type of band. All things appear patiently considered, a fine touch of strong taste which’d had me ripping back through ‘Blood Sabbath‘ as often as I could fit ’em in rotation. It is a fantastic first showing from Serpent Corpse, any band showing up in such rare form right out of the box is well worth praising and they’ve got riffs, catchier doomed aggression and plenty of fire to burn here on this debut. A high recommendation.

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