It has been said (most likely in a David Attenborough documentary somewhere) that there is 500lbs of insect matter on Earth for every 1lbs of human matter, so apocalypse wrought by man-eating insects seems to me a grotesquely underexplored end-of-world scenario in horror media. It is therefore disgustingly refreshing to see this scenario treated with such expert musicianship, crushing violence, devotion to mood, and overwhelming enthusiasm as it is here in INSECT INSIDE'S debut album. Hailing form Chelyabinsk, these Russian brutal death metallers punch the world in the face with a knock-out debut album!

After an intro track that could only be justly described as nightmare fuel - complete with grotesquely satisfying use of sound effects - "Sickening Ground" gives the listener something like a microcosm of what's to come in a track that condenses nicely an album of brutality into less than two minutes. If you had literally only a couple of minutes to spare and wanted a feel for the album, this track accomplishes that admirably! "Posthumous Grief" opens with riffage that has the listener already straining their spine through compulsive head-banging at the behest of crushing violence. Particularly satisfying here is the drum work, bouncing playfully between tempos and beats to provide a veritable variety-show of death metal drumming.

"The First Shining Of New Genus" and "For The Glory Of Swarm" form a nice pair of short tracks, almost studies in death metal. Competently constructed and expertly delivered, they clearly demonstrate the key features of this genre almost in the style of an academic exercise - a slam 'study' if you like. "Revival Of Ungodly Deformity" features guest vocals from Kirill Nazarov, who lends an entertaining Nathan Explosion quality to the track. Makes you wonder what DETHKLOK would sound like if they were a real-life band (you know what I mean!)

"Derelict Sanity" opens with an utterly delicious bassline, very much in the punchy virtuoso style of Alex Webster and others in this style. I find this track a real high-point, wholly worthy of comparison to more well-established acts in the genre. "Evisceration Through The Throat" plays stop and start throughout in a way that keeps the listener on their toes, not allowing you to become too comfortable - insofar as brutal death metal could be described as 'comfortable'! "Embalming For Chrysalis" demonstrates the very best musicianship and virtuosity on display. There are almost NILE feels about this track in places, a true testament to the complexity present throughout this album. "Pulsating Earth" closes, revisiting many of the sights and sounds we have seen in the album up to this point. With sickening guest vocals, courtesy of Roman Vlasenko - the listener is left with the impression that at no point has the brutality let up. We have been bludgeoned non-stop from start to finish in the best possible way!

This is a very impressive debut - any listener would be forgiven for mistaking this for a band with many more records under its belt. This record is crushing, stomping, brutalising, and slots nice and snug into the well-populated canon of brutal death metal. Whereas some bands take a long time to truly find their feet and their sound, INSECT INSIDE seem to have more or less accomplished this nearly immediately, a credit to the sheer talent on display.