Let's take a moment to discuss art and logos. In the age of instant gratification, some may argue that the value of album art and a well-crafted logo have been diminished because, unlike times past, music is on our computers. Some, like myself, do still enjoy the physical aspects of releases and split buying between digital and physical mediums. To me, if I can't look through the liner notes, for example, something is missing in an otherwise immersive experience. However, I do absolutely respect and use digital formats.

CASKET GRINDER hails from Colombia and are relative newcomers to the death metal game. Although young, they have obviously studied up on their history, and the artwork of their second album, "Fall Into Dementia", certainly reflects this care and attention to the small details. Firstly, the logo is absolutely excellent. The placement on the album cover is great, immediately drawing the eye of the listener before a note even rings out, inviting a scan of the rest of the cover to discover its secrets. I don't know, it looks like a neuron or synapse or something. It's cool, and that's really what matters.

CASKET GRINDER play death metal, period. The type of neck wrecking, dizzying, exhilarating death metal we all know and love. Check out the sweet bass licks on "The Portal", kicking in swiftly after a delicious battering of riffs and pummeling drums with vocals straight from the bowels of the nether realms. Production values here are slightly murky but not to caveman-esque levels. The low end really shines through to rattle the floorboards of your mind. Nimble leads play with kick drum maelstroms, winding their way around the inner ear and staying put. "Behold the Abominations" kicks off with a great drum fill, followed by a well-placed dive bomb lead that collapses into trem bits and, again, those vocals. These are deep and resonating growls, kids, get your "grrr" face on. You know the one.

Now, about that groove. Groove is all over this album, even during the fast parts. Take, for example, "Buzzing Frenzy", which is an absolute monolith of riff, a clinic of blast, an education in violence, etc. Closing out the album with the title track can be a risky decision, but in the case of CASKET GRINDER, the choice pays off in (bloody) spades, with instantly memorable instrumentation and a drum performance that is slightly off time. Fans of death metal, take note of CASKET GRINDER. They're going places.