UK death metal legends Cancer return with their highly anticipated follow-up to 2018’s Shadow Gripped—the brutal and uncompromising Inverted World.
Brooding, groove-laden opener “Enter the Gates” is a refreshing, no-nonsense creation that welcomes the band into the listener’s psyche with a wave of blast beats and swirling riffs, with follow-up, bassline-dominant “Until They Died” providing a narrative of urgency that complements its predecessor effortlessly.
The album’s murky and barbaric artwork is thrust front and centre for title track “Inverted World”, which also benefits from some tight production elements—leading into “39 Bodies” with a sense of sheer dominance and determination.
There are moments of sheer, blistering obliteration of the senses, and nothing highlights that more than the lyrical and musical delivery of “Test Site”. And should you need that point driven home any further, look no further than “Amputate”.
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Speaking on the release, founding member and vocalist John Walker shared:
“I started writing the new material shortly after the COVID lockdowns. I nearly always start the writing process by basically fooling around on the guitar. Then, after a while, riffs start to turn into musical ideas.
The lyrics—I tend to spend some time thinking about a concept, and then I pick the vocabulary appropriate to the idea. Inspiration comes from what’s happening and what has happened in the world, and curious tales that interest me.
This album is the band’s seventh full-length release, and I feel very fortunate at my age to still be able to do it. Mixed by V. Santura, I’m super happy with how it’s turned out.”
There’s not experimentation here, but rather a maturity in musicianship, which is well demonstrated on “When Killing Isn’t Murder”, and really underpins just how well this album flows—moving into “Covert Operations” with real prowess.
Inverted World concludes with the duo of dynamic-shifting “Jesus for Eugenics”, which carries a whispering, menacing quality, before final offering “Corrosive” not only positions itself as a future live favourite, but also showcases exactly why Cancer have retained their global following for so long.
Technically flawless and undeniably crushing.
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Inverted World is out on April 25th
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