Ripping Corpse
Dreaming With The Dead

First of all, I find it necessary to introduce the band I'm about to review, the American group Ripping Corpse. The band was formed in 1987 and unfortunately remained an underground reality for the rest of their career. They had everything they needed to reach the level of the genre's sacred monsters, but for one reason or another, the group failed to achieve the deserved fame.

The line-up includes Scott Ruth on vocals, Shaune Kelly and Erik Rutan (yes, that Erik Rutan... the future guitarist of Morbid Angel) on guitars, Dave Bizzigotti on bass, and finally Brandon Thomas on drums. Between 1987 and 1990, the band recorded three demos which served as a prelude to a seminal album from which many other bands would draw inspiration. Let's move on to the analysis of this work endowed with extraordinarily overflowing energy, it is the group's only full-length, 'Dreaming With The Dead'. It starts immediately with the furious "Sweetness", a track that instantly reveals the group's style; a powerful blend of Death/Thrash and old school Hardcore. The result, trust me, is truly devastating. We move on to the second track, the title track, also driven by riffs interspersed with blazing solos by Rutan, a truly beautiful and well-structured song. The third track, "Anti God", is the best of the lot, with a powerful drum roll introducing a ruthless riff; Ruth's voice is truly gritty and powerful, an absolutely wonderful song. Very good is the following "Glorious Depravity", followed by the fast-paced "Beyond Humanity", featuring excellent solo highlights from Rutan.

The following "Feeling Pleasure Through Pain" is excellent, a rock-solid mid-tempo with several well-placed tempo changes. The seventh and eighth tracks are two very valid songs, respectively "Through The Skin To The Soul" and "Rift Of Hate", always featuring that contained fury that then explodes in a climax of devastation. Good songs also "Deeper Demons" and "Sickness Of The Will", always characterized by the group's distinctive sound. The penultimate track "Chugging Pus" is one of the most peculiar and successful, with a very sharp riffing and splendid refinement work by Rutan. The concluding "Seduction Of The Innocent" is excellent, a further punch in the face of the listener, who is hit with razor-sharp riffs and claustrophobic slowdowns.

'Dreaming With The Dead', dated 1991, is an album that comes close to being a masterpiece. Unfortunately, it was the first and last work of Ripping Corpse, who, with a few more years of experience and slightly refined songwriting, could have delivered priceless gems. Recommended.