Review:

Tar – Left 2 Bleed

In the world of metal’s extremities, death metal reigns superior amongst most. From the classic releases of the 1980s such as Leprosy and Altars of Madness all the way into the classic releases of the 1990s such as Left Hand Path and Tomb of the Mutilated, death metal is still running rapid today in the underground scene being backed by tons of stellar bands, artists, labels, and fans that absolutely ride or die for this shit. One of those labels that has been on the underground forefront as of late is Frozen Screams Imprint with their stellar zine prints and stellar releases spanning from a stellar lineup of bands such as Wharflurch, Maul, Weeping, and many more. On February 4th of this year (2022), Frozen Screams let loose another act of savagery unto the world: TAR’s Left 2 Bleed. Forewarning, it crushes.

TAR came into the scene in July 2019 with their release Violence in Disguise. This release was very much rooted sound wise for the likes of metallic hardcore bands such Knocked Loose, Jesus Piece, and other acts of that nature. The riffs were dissonant, and the vocals were piercing. Fast forward to now, and not much has changed. There has been some change but we’re not talking like 80s Carcass to Heartwork Carcass. The riffs are heavier; the vocals are heavier. This release is one hell of a ride, and if you don’t love it, re-evaluate.

To start things off, the delightfully titled opener “Shot in the Back of the Head” creeps in with a slow riff that sounds like it is hovering, and it almost sounds like it was replicated from Black Sabbath circa 1971. Then, at the one-minute mark, the first impression of being a death doom release is proven wrong. A breakdown that is remnant of deathcore and Knocked Loose riffs starts. This song continues to pummel through till the short lived two-minutes ends. Once it ends though, don’t worry. This train is not done rolling yet.

“Pit of Corpses” kicks in next, and this might be my personal favorite on the release. It starts off with mid-paced riffs that are coupled with quick blast beat flurries on the drums here and there. The vocals kick in being super guttural, but they have a ton of definition to them (think Corpsegrinder kind of?). Around the 1:30 mark of the song, the vocals switch from being guttural and return to a more hardcore punk vocal style as an ode to the first release from these guys. The final minute of the song deteriorates completely to a buffet of slam parts, torturous vocals, and just pure art.

The third track from this FSI offering, “Kingdom of Savagery”, is a close contender for my personal favorite because this song just feels like death metal worship to the core. The riffs at times sound like they were copied and pasted right out of Florida’s 90s scene, but I mean this in the most tasteful way possible. This is not me saying that it feels like the band ripped off anyone. It still feels very much like this band. The song even ends with more hardcore vocal stuff which is pretty cool in my opinion.

Next up is “Scorched by Fire”. This song is pretty cool, and I feel like it qualifies as the most unique cut on this album. It feels like it brings back that doom-y feel that was present on the very beginning of the song “Shot in the Back of the Head”. The song keeps the hardcore riffs coming as well just like the other songs, but this song comes by much slower it feels like. The end is nearing though, and this song does serve as a great introduction of the pure fucking filth that is coming up.

“Left Bleeding”, which I guess could be argued as the title track, comes in with a cleaner sounding picked chord riff with a voiceover over it. Right at one-minute in, your body already feels like it has been used as the shovel to dig your own grave. This song is a jackhammer moving at the slowest speed possible while still being able to hammer quickly enough that it is helped out by a little double bass and a sweet ass little solo around two-minutes in. This song as far as death metal goes, is pure and excellently executed, but it is missing the hardcore sounding parts which I felt myself missing a lot. Either way, this track is still great, and it ends the release on a hella strong note.

TAR was a band that I was 100% unfamiliar with until I checked out this release, and I would be lying if I said anything other than the absolute highest regards to this beast of a record. When it comes to music, death metal and punk based genres are the areas I gravitate to the most. So, when a band does this without sounding like a typical trend setting deathcore band on TikTok, it is super fucking refreshing, and I will be here for it every single time. This release could be one of my favorites this year without the slightest element of surprise. I truly think this record will stand as a monumental change and milestone for this band!

Be sure to follow the band on Instagram @tar.401 as well as FSI @frozen_screams_imprint 

Written by Noah, owner of Obscured Sounds Zine

Instagram: @noahpalmdeath @obscuredsounds