It has been fifteen years since Bay Area death metal legends Autopsy put out their last album, Shitfun, so I think I’ll be forgiven for being a little late with my write-up of their new EP The Tomb Within—which is, incidentally, in keeping with their last album’s title. Reuniting the same day that Abcess (the main project of drummer/vocalist Chris Reifert and guitarist Danny Coralles since Autopsy’s breakup in 1995) disbanded, the new lineup features Refiert, Coralles, and Autopsy guitarist Eric Cutler plus newcomer Joe Trevisano, the bass player from Abcess. As anyone who has listened to Abcess, in many ways the spiritual successor to Autopsy, knows, these guys still bring it with grinding, doom-heavy death metal. Oh yeah.
Autopsy wastes no time in announcing their return on The Tomb Within, diving headfirst into the title track with sludgy hypnotic guitar riffs, dirty frantic drumming, and tortured growls and screams. This is Autopsy, to be sure, dust free and in fine form. Occasionally the band will slow things down with warped breakdowns, which seem to be the musical equivalent to ripping out your soul, before returning to the chaotic guitar and drum work that are Autopsy’s signature style. My roommate walked by as I was listening to the song “Seven Skulls,” a particularly hectic and twisted bruiser, and asked, “Is that the band from Ace Ventura?” (alluding to the cameo by Cannibal Corpse), and I had to commend his guess as a non-listener of the genre—if you aren’t familiar with Autopsy and are familiar with Ace Ventura, as I think most people probably are, the concert scene from that movie will give you an idea of what to expect from Autopsy. Though, of course, Autopsy is sludgier and more bruising.
The musicianship on The Tomb Within is top notch and age has played no part in dictating the band’s style or pace, which is as beautifully frantic or more frantic than ever. The EP, which is in anticipation of a full length to come in 2011 entitled Macabre Eternal, is a triumphant return for these seasoned vets. It is brutal, seriously metal, and a rollicking good time. Autopsy is back.