Ixpapalotl
Corpse Republic

[colored_box color=”grey”]Rating: 8.5
Label: Clean Head Productions
Website: Link
Author: Aggelos “Redneck” Katsouras[/colored_box]

A part of the constant rise of the extreme scene in Greece, Ixpapalotl can make you bounce your whole body while listening to them. If you know what death metal meeting grinding process with the whole outcome making the listener feeling like dancing violently, then Ixpapalotl are surely the definition of such a term (if it exists). When you see a band live and: 1)they don’t lose a note despite they play difficult stuff, 2)they show capable of handling the crowd without saying too much but just play the music and last but not least, 3)they give you the sense that they can release something great without too much effort, then you already know what the real deal is before you face the reality in this EP. The truth is I was expecting something full of quality, but I think I must have eluded something in the way as I was caught by surprise.

‘’Corpse Republic’’ contains seven songs only that unfortunately last only something less than 22 minutes. I say unfortunately because just when you feel you’re getting warmed up for more, it ends and leaves you with an unsatisfied taste. Don’t get too lousy though, as these tracks are more than enough to show you that you don’t have to worry about them, but only wait for their full-length to come and really grind every soulless corpse it may encounter ahead. The boys play like veterans that know the sound for decades, their minimalistic and simple approach to each track with heavy riffs, pounding drumming and thick-skinned and guttural at point vocals is the right recipe for each band to sound special and unique, despite they play stuff you may have heard before. They do it in such a good way that will make you wonder why you didn’t listen to them much earlier.

From the violent beginning of ‘’Ghost Of Hunger’’ where the drummer marches on like capturing a whole fortress on his own, to the death metal landmark ‘’Ritual Freak’’, where you feel that you listen all you’ve known and worshipped in the 25 years of the whole genre, Ixpapalotl play like masters and deliver a great release that must make every Greek fan proud of them. The other extreme fans will simply realize their talent in other amazing tracks like ‘’Warped In Riot’’ or ‘’Concrete Suffering’’ (tell me ‘bout it…) and the title track. Not to mention the almost flawless production, that gives them a vast sound but doesn’t make them sound cheesy or so clear. The movie samples during the tracks add much more to the final feelings, especially in the 94 second catapult called ‘’Chaotic Intentions’’ that makes you feel like you’ve been torn by a shredder (‘’Oh, I’m sorry, did I break your concentration?’’…thumbs up boys)!

The closing with ‘’Scorn The Law’’ puts the tombstone on the grave of crappy so-called ‘’quality music’’. A Greek release of American standards, ‘’Corpse Republic’’ shows how the genre must be played. The guys put all elements they have to in order to sound extreme but also rather mature. They know what they want to produce and how they want to transmit it to the fans and that’s even more important than the real value of this EP. I think that the guys are up to something that will make us face them with even more respect in the future. Hadn’t we talked for an EP and the overall duration wasn’t too short, we’d talk about a masterpiece of the global scene. I’m sure their upcoming album will be crucial not only for the band, but for the whole facing of our country from the international music critics. All hail the corpsegrinders!