Reviewed by Andy Long

Death, it seems, is alive and well. How's that for a paradox? Not only is it alive and well, it's sunning itself on the beaches of Australia. This compilation from Mortification's Steve Rowe's label proves it, five divisions of death-dealers from Australia pumping out 15 tracks of serious grindcore, kicking off with four tracks from Ethereal Scourge with a typical spiritual warfare theme. The CD moves into a mini death opera, "The Plague" from a studio project band Screams Of Chaos, the plot of which involves time travel to escape a killer plague. Next up are Embodiment whose three songs examine the conflict between spirit and flesh, commitment to the world and commitment to Christ. The fourth band are Metanoia (not to be confused with the British AOR band) with possibly the most unintelligibly acid-throated vocalist of the lot. Special mention must go to the didgeridoo intro to "Eternal Destruction". The final offering is a single track from Vomoth, "Beyond The Gate". Vomoth sounds like the name of some insect-like arch-fiend from a Dan Dare comic, and listening to the track I think that's probably what it is. I would have liked to hear more of this unorthodox outfit who deserve an award for the most illegible logo 1995. So, death fans slap another shrimp on the barbi and press the shuffle button!

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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