Exclusive Stream: Gruesome’s “Savage Land”

Metal has seen its fair share of worship bands over the years (see Black Sabbath’s direct line to every doom band ever), but it’s rare that one comes along whose sole purpose is to pay homage to one specific group and their highly specific style. Enter Gruesome, a bonafide supergroup (members of Exhumed, Malevolent Creation, Possessed and Derketa) that exists exclusively to worship at the altar of Chuck Schuldiner and his work with Death circa 1987-1991 (that would be Scream Bloody Gore, Leprosy, Spiritual Healing and Human).

Everything is spot-on, from the copycat logo and Ed Repka cover art to the pummeling, Florida-soaked riffs. It’s as if some dusty vault was recently unearthed and a treasure trove of old Chuck tapes were recovered, restored, and unleashed on the general public.

Savage Land, Gruesome’s debut LP, drops April 21 in North America on Relapse Records. You can pre-order here, but until then, check out an exclusive stream of the entire album below.