Foul Body Autopsy - So Close To Complete Dehumanization

Foul Body Autopsy

So Close To Complete Dehumanization

by Patrick Eden at 16 January 2015, 1:13 PM

Progressive Blackened Vegan One Man Melodic Death Metal. That is a lot of words. I should state that while I have no problem with people being vegan in itself, I have a serious issue with people to try to force their veganism, figuratively speaking, down other people’s throats. So I did go into this album with the foreboding sense that I was just going to be preached to. So with my prejudices firmly in place, I started listening.

One man Metal projects always deserve, I feel, a degree of respect for their ability to bring out records, while having to rely solely on their own self for ideas and material. This is particularly applicable to FOUL BODY AUTOPSY, whose one member, Tom Reynolds, describes himself as armed with nothing but a guitar and an Ipod. Brave stuff indeed but he’s definitely used his limited resources to the best of his (considerable) ability.

To put it briefly the two tracks on this EP are musically fantastic. The guitar work is stellar throughout. It’s brutal, high tempo and intricate, but also varied enough to maintain interest as well with the progressive elements being brought to the fore. The opening riff to “So Close To Complete Dehumanization” is the best example of this, barely sitting still on any one pattern. Switching between stereotypical Black Metal riffs to more diverse Death Metal patterns. It sounds fantastic and it’s as good, if not better than most other Death Metal bands’ material you could care to mention. Credit where it’s due, Tom Reynolds is clearly a very talented individual.

Vocally, he switches well between death growls, higher Black Metal style screams and, on “Born Into A Manmade Hell”, his vocals briefly sound ever so slightly like what would normally be associated with Metalcore. The vocals are impressive enough but are also party to the biggest let down on the record. The production isn’t the best and on more than one occasion, but particularly on the title track, they do get lost in the mix to the point of being pretty much inaudible.

All in all this EP is a good, if all too short, sample of FOUL BODY AUTOPSY and Tom Reynolds. The eponymously titled debut full length came out in 2013. If like me you’ve never heard this before then use “So Close To Complete Dehumanization” as a taster, and work backwards.