Florida has a rich history of Death Metal, and there are plenty of different sounds that have come from the state. Enter GRAVEVIEW, the band to break the barrier between Brutal Death Metal and old school Swedish Death Metal on their compilation "Demos '18-'19," the uniting of the band's two demos (obviously).

While both demos were released just around a year apart, "Demo '18" is quite different than "Demo '19." With the first demo, the idea of Brutal Death Metal and Swedish Death Metal being mixed is very present. "Selective Mortality" introduces it as a heavy, atmospheric collection of music with an emphasis on slams and brutality on the second two tracks.

With "Grotesquery" and "Descent into Filth" there are plenty of good riffs to go around. Graveview is a band to make a song progress rather and repeat, although they do repeat some key motifs. These two songs dabble in slams and brutality, but they are never drawn out to an extent that is satisfactory. They move on from a slamming groove too fast with new riffs.

"Demo '19" shows a large improvement. First, the production is much sharper. Not to say the production on the previous demo was any better; it just seems clearer here. This demo shows a lot more emphasis on brutality and less emphasis on atmosphere, although there is still some present. The riffs are also much better, especially on "Inconceivable Possession."

"Amalgamation of Insanity" is the highlight of the entire compilation, reminiscent of GORGASM or, more accurately, IMAGES OF VIOLENCE. The riffs are heavy as they are fast, and each riff brings a new level of brutality not shown before with this band. It is the perfect conclusion to the compilation.

Songwriting, while sometimes structurally poor on the first demo, is a strongpoint, especially in the writing of the riffs. What really stands out is their experimentation with time signatures, adding an extra two or three beats on the end of a riff once in a while. While this can sometimes be risky, Graveview do it very effectively. Each time they do it, it adds a new dimension to the riff and garners more respect for the song.

Graveview has massive potential. In their field of Hardcore-influenced Slamming Swedish Death Metal, they are pioneers, especially since I never thought that genre would exist not have I ever heard a band play this style before. These demos show a very creative and ambitious sliver of music that will manifest into a very interesting career.