Carcass
Tools Of The Trade

THE REVIEW

A year after the excellent "Necroticism," Carcass return to the recording studio. Whether as a divertissement or to test the synergy between the two axe-men Bill Steer and Michael Amott, the Englishmen bring to life the "Tools of the Trade" EP, one of the lesser-known episodes in the career of this band. The EP could be described as an appendix to "Necroticism," as it revisits the classic gore themes and maintains the style of the previous full-length album.

The content (four songs under twenty minutes) is, all in all, enjoyable, although at the end of the listen, there's a lingering bitter aftertaste. You might wonder why I express myself this way... and I'll promptly answer: in this small work, our guys seem like talented youngsters mimicking the real Carcass. This is confirmed when listening to "Tools of the Trade": if you exclude the title track, which is closer in style to "Symphonies," the other songs are rehashed material, like "Pyosisified (Still Rotten to the Gore)", which, as the title suggests, is nothing more than a re-recording of "Pyosisified (Rotten to the Gore)". Riffs heard and reheard even in "Hepatic Tissue Fermentation II", which borrows something from "Carneous Cacoffiny", just for a change. Finally, to end on a high note, what do we find? ...but of course, "Incarnated Solvent Abuse", a single from "Necroticism", also placed here for our delight.

In short, the album is good, it's still Carcass, not just any band; the only flaw is the lack of innovation, but it's also understandable, given that we're dealing with an EP. I recommend it to those familiar with Carcass even if they've never heard it before and to those in search of a smooth and enjoyable listen.