GWAR - Bloody Pit of Horror

October 30, 2010

Reviewer: Rottenbucher

Right of the heels of Lust in Space and a 25^th anniversary tour, GWAR cranks out Bloody Pit of Horror. Just slightly over a year after their splendid return to spaced-out potty humor, Bloody Pit of Horror finds the ghouls from Antarctica now looking to zombies for help with their endless quest to destroy Earth. At this pace and with this much energy, they may succeed.

“Zombies, March!” gets things moving sounding more akin to something from War Party than Lust in Space.  Vocalist Oderus and the boys grind out an excellent album opener and jump on the current zombie craze with what will undoubtedly become a live staple. However, “Come the Carnivor” features GWAR slowing down to a snail’s pace. Drenched in Doom, the track steals a lot of the energy from the opener and isn’t memorable at all. This error is quickly corrected by the pulsating “A Gathering of Ghouls.” Much faster and with more complex riffing the song is a quick burner that leaps right into “Storm in Coming.”  Oderus vomits out some inflammatory lyrics while the band continues to grind out some great Metal.

“Tick-Tits” brings back more of the comedic elements and while is just as heavy as the previous song, the mood is much more jovial. Beefcake the Mighty handles the vocals on the punk-based thrash of “Beat You to Death.”  The track also features a crunchy midsection and some great soloing from Balsac and Flattus Maximus.  “You are my Meat” changes the mood of the album again.  This ode to cannibalism teeters between classical acoustic guitars and huge riffs. The brutal semi-ballad finds Oderus at his best with his delivery of wobbly vocals and even great roars.  “You are my Meat” quickly jumps into the grinding “Hail, Genocide” while “KZ Necromancer” may just be one of GWAR’s heaviest tracks ever released.  “The Litany of the Slain” rumbles and tumbles from undulant riffing and the album roars to a halt with silly yet slaying “Sick and Twisted.”

Bloody Pit of Horror is GWAR’s shortest album.  But what it lacks in length it makes up in sonic strength.  This album easily competes with War Party for being their heaviest but Bloody Pit of Horror retains the zaniness of Lust in Space and their earlier albums.  The only issue is the album does seem a bit rushed.  “Come the Carnivor” could have been thrown away and 4 of the songs bleed together so well that close attention is demanded to differentiate between the songs. Those criticisms aside, Oderus is still going strong and Bloody Pit of Horror features all of his explosive ranges. Again the band needs to be praised.  If it weren’t for their costumes, lyrical content ranging from silly to obscene and legendary live show, GWAR would get much more praise and be taken more seriously.

Back on Earth and on loads of crack, GWAR has been going strong now for 5 albums in a row. There is plenty of ferocious Metal to love here and undoubtedly their live shows will feature a bloody pit of horror.  Bloody Pit of Horror is recommended for all Bohabs and even those still too hip to bow before Metal’s greatest showmen in the universe.

Release Date: November 9, 2010
Label: Metal Blade Records 

TRACK LISTING

1.  Zombies, March!
2.  Come the Carnivor
3.  A Gathering of Ghouls
4.  Storm is Coming
5.  Tick-Tits
6.  Beat You to Death
7.  You are my Meat
8.  Hail, Genocide!
9.  KZ Necromancer
10.  The Litany of the Slain
11.  Sick and Twisted

Total playing time:  37:03

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