CARCASS - Heartwork LP

Heartwork proves that this band, which once buried technical perfection beneath layers of grotesque noise, is capable of shining as cleanly as the steel H.R. Giger sculpture on the cover of this death-metal classic. All of the bludgeoned progressions are intact, but this time they swoon rather than suffocate. This is a meticulously constructed grindcore masterpiece that sounds fresh, but never abandons the unique twists of the genre it helped create. By playing fewer notes, the impressive structure behind Carcass's compositions is revealed. It turns out the snarling skeleton that emerges is just as lethal as the menacing muck from which it crawled.