Fetid Zombie: Death Covenant (2019)

Readers of my Top 5 EPs of 2019 post already know how I feel about this release.  It made the #2 spot for the year, which is not terribly surprising given how I feel about this band in general.  I discovered Fetid Zombie, the unashamedly retro death metal project of renowned metal artist Mark Riddick, a couple of years ago.  There are a ton of demos, EPs and splits released by the project and I pick up every single one I see.  So when this EP (the band's only 2019 release) dropped, I had to grab it.

I do not know whether the name of the release, which references two legendary death metal bands (Death and Morbid Angel, via their third album title, Covenant) is intentional or not.  It may as well be, because a more apt description of the music than a combination of early Death (think Scream Bloody Gore) and Morbid Angel could not be made.  This is an EP of four tracks of gleefully old-school death metal.  Riddick's voice even sounds more and more like Chuck Schuldiner this time around. 

One of the most interesting aspects of each Fetid Zombie release is what guest stars appear.  Since Riddick does artwork for so many bands, he has seemingly made a lot of friends in the business who jump at the opportunity to appear on his project.  This time around, Malcolm Pugh of tech death mavens Inferi, James Malone of Arsis, and Carcass/Arch Enemy legend Michael Amott all provide solos.  And those solos are fantastic, it is almost possible to tell just who is who.

Fetid Zombie has yet to disappoint me.  This release is as good as anything else the band has ever done, while seemingly paying tribute to two giants in the genre.  More people should be listening to Fetid Zombie.