"Scream Bloody Gore" is a great album, but as Autopsy's debut shows, it was possible to create something even better in this style. Chris Reifert himself, the leader of Autopsy, apparently came to such conclusions, because his vision of death metal was completely different from that of Chuck Schuldiner. Greater emphasis on rawness, primordiality and a much clearer necro-vibe are some of the few things that Schuldiner quickly rejected and which the guys from Autopsy intercepted for their playing and gave them a new quality. And as usually I don't like such simplification, in the case of Autopsy it absolutely worked. In my opinion, they made one of the best albums that landed under this name!
First of all, it results from a few simple, but - at least by me - very desirable things in this style, which are sometimes hard to find, i.e. creativity, differentiation, a sick climate and a large dose of originality. Although the technique in the case of "Severed Survival" (or Autopsy at all) does not diverge, Eric Cutler and Danny Coralles did not approach the guitar part on the basis of simplifications or boring patterns, the general feeling and melodies (in even rocky solos!) they chose such that they perfectly match their "sick" style. Another thing that adds extraordinary value to "Severed..." (though again, more to the band himself) concerns Chris, who...decided to take on the role of drummer and vocalist! Drums stayed in the "Scream Bloody Gore" style, but Reifert's vocals are quite a departure from those from Death - these are definitely more "insane" and pathological. Finally, my favorite and making "Severed..." the most unique, that is the matter of bass. This one was recorded here by Steve DiGiorgio himself (although the booklet suggests Ken Sorvari), which with such a person means even more interesting and inventive music. And it was no different with Autopsy's debut, where you can safely say that the bass lines are its most diverse point.
All this - together with the virtuoso bass - fitted into a great piece of death metal, where mainly dirt, rawness and hideousness count. Nevertheless, each track contains a slightly different idea, does not focus on excessively fast paces, and at the same time focuses on a nice, "unfriendly" atmosphere, decent riffs or even quite numerous death/doom slowdowns. It's worth mentioning here, for example, "Gasping For Air", "Critical Madness", "Disembowel" or "Service For A Vacant Coffin", but most of all about the brilliant "Ridden With Disease", the atmosphere and main theme of which runs through the whole song just rules. For me, this is the essence of Autopsy and a perfect show how good this band actually is.
And in the vast majority of cases it is an excellent answer to what Death could have been if Schuldiner decided to stick to the "Scream Bloody Gore" style. Such a "continuation" was released under a different name, but gave rise to a band that also managed to record a lot of sensible music (even after reunion). Otherwise, I wouldn't review it.
Sample: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtruG6l0te8
