Album review: Fit For An Autopsy, Thy Art Is Murder & Malevolence – The Aggression Sessions

Each offering up one original and one cover, Fit For An Autopsy, Thy Art Is Murder and Malevolence have come together to break your head. Repeatedly. A sequel of sorts to 2016’s The Depression Sessions, which featured The Acacia Strain rather than Malevolence, it’s an engaging collection that winningly unites the heavy hitters.

The originals are first, with FFAA coming hard out of the gate with their standard mixture of the eerie and the severely weighty, with a nod to their earlier, faster work leaving a big mark. TAIM follow with a similar concoction that has a nice creepiness to it and does not skimp on the blastbeats. Then it’s down to Malevolence, and they take a different tangent, throwing a little swagger into the mix, but have plenty of judder to satisfy deathcore fans.

Then come the covers. FFAA look to their influences, and deliver a take on At The Gates’ Under A Serpent Sun, which they bulk up without losing the nuances of the original. TAIM unwisely attack Cannibal Corpse’s seminal Hammer Smashed Face, a song no-one but its authors can do justice to, and then it’s Malevolence’s turn, with Anastacia’s Left Outside Alone. It does sound like they are histrionically taking the piss a fair bit, but they do so with chunky aplomb, and the chorus actually hits the spot.

There’s nothing strictly original here, and all bands have done better, but everyone should be happy with their contributions, artists and fans alike.

Rating: 3/5

For fans of: Suicide Silence, Carnifex, The Acacia Strain

The Aggression Sessions is released on April 7 via Nuclear Blast