Guillotined - Demo 2013

I am very pleased to be writing about yet another unsurprisingly promising group from the Philippines.  Guillotined are a Brutal Death Metal band that has been around for a few years now.  They released a full length in 2010 entitled "Souls Eternally Devoured," a decent debut that contained an equal mix of super technical guitar parts and heavy, chugging, memorable slower riffs.  That album, for whatever reason, seemed to go unnoticed by many.  It is a rather impressive release considering it is only two guys; AC Estandian on guitars and drum programming and Bin Bautista on Vocals.  The bands first material was actually on a 2008 Demo.  At the time, they went by the name Uteral Regurgity.  I kind of wish they would've kept the name!  With only one remaining member of that band, I guess a new name was in order.  If you are a new fan of Guillotined, check out their first full length as well as this three song 2013 demo I am about to talk about.

Since then, the band has lost one member and added three new ones.  AC Estandian, also in the band Anal Fissure, stands strong as the only remaining original member of Guillotined.  If you like the guitar riffs on this demo, and you will, then you've him to thank.  This demo premiers a brand new vocalist, drummer, and bassist.  No wonder things sound a little different!
It is safe to say that the addition of vocalist Myke Pardo has greatly improved the bands range of dynamics, something they struggled with before.  Also the drummer for Anal Fissure, Myke Pardo is apparently a man of many talents.  Choppy, accurately placed, and much lower gutturals give these three tracks a rawness that Guillotined adopt very well.  Guitarist AC Estandian provides his usual brand of stop and go palm muted riffs, only at a slower pace than "Souls Eternally Devoured" had us accustomed to.  Things are not presented in a neatly wrapped package but rather laid out before the listener as a raw sample of what is to come.  That being said, I think there will be some very good things to come from the band's new and improved line up.  The debut of the band's first human drummer, Em Lozano (Discreate), is a very effective one.  He brings these recordings alive with his blasts and oddly timed fills.  Red Mendoza is the bassist on this demo.  Unfortunately, his low-end thickening is thwarted by the production.  The mixing here sends the listener on a scavenger hunt for any bass guitar at all.
At under twelve minutes, this demo is a very quick listen.   A listen that effectively leaves you hanging and hoping for more.  Soon.   Not to worry, Guillotined is currently working on their second full length album, hoping to have it released by the first quarter of year 2014.

GUILLOTINED

Disastrous - Severe Suffering - 2012 Brute! Productions

This Filipino band had a lot to live up to since there last release “Slavery of Disgusting Torture”. They fell short of doing so, but I think it is still worth checking out.
The recording on this album sounds sonically better and the vocals are mixed in nicely, but there is still a lack of range and dynamic.  The first track, “Kingdom of The Lifeless” is a little disorienting upon first listen.  It takes some effort to make sense of; everything feels like it has been hacked up and poorly put back together.  This song serves as a weak start to an album I was very, very excited to hear.  “It’s Your Turn To Kill” said one song to the next.  It does kill, in a few ways.  The drumming is consistent and the guitar is relentlessly, verging on messily, flying all over.  The bass guitar starts to shine through here also, but not anywhere near enough.  At 2:10 things change ever so slightly to an awesome pounding section that does not overstay it’s welcome, leading us into an abrupt ending.

"Liquid Flesh Splattered" opens with a generic sample of a screaming woman and wet noises, one could assume liquid flesh.  Luckily I have surprisingly not grown tired of these stupid samples unless of course they go on for to long.  The melodic riffs of the guitar are all over the place and chaotic. I think this record could use different recording/micing techniques to get cleaner sounds and better fitting tones.
 At around 1:35 the creativity that is Disastrous returns.  Simple yet effective brutality.  Drums do weird super splashing things and is a little distracting.
 "Removal of Spinal Cord" is a pretty boring song in context with the rest.  This is definitely one of those albums that should only be listened to as a whole, and it takes some warming up to.  The title track packs a refreshing punch that will wake you up.  Starting with the funky bass fill that might even make you dance a little bit.  This is my favorite track so far because I can hear the bass, and it’s groovy. It also has bits and pieces of weirdness that only Disastrous can put in a song and call it Brutal Death. Songs like this are why I fell in love with this band in the first place.
"Death Dimension" begins with a legitimately frightening sample and then proceeds to bash your skull in with what is apparently a kick ass second half of this album.  "Skull Fucking Pulverized" stays creative and catchy.  This band is good at stringing together parts and riffs and making them seem like they fit.  The last song is called "9.9" and it is almost that long.  I expected a six minute sample or something but luckily it starts off with some pretty interesting stuff and kind of reminds me of Disgorge.  Then, after some silence, our friend "Freddie The Blamer" shows up with some classical guitar skills.  This serves as a rather nice ending to a rather OK album.

My biggest complaint has to be the drums.  They always feel rushed or off in some way and come off bland and annoying.  While Severe Suffering has some gems, as a whole it just does not flow.

Still, Disastrous prove they are back at it and they are not fucking around.

The band has since signed to Sevared Records and are finishing work on their next album.

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