Dead And Dripping - Blackened Cerebral Rifts Review - Metal Utopia

Band: Dead And Dripping
Album: Blackened Cerebral Rifts
Label: Transcending Obscurity Records
Genre: Brutal Death Metal
Country: US
Release Date: August 11th, 2023
For Fans Of: Demilich, Dischordia, Effluence

Dead and Dripping are a brutal death metal band from New Jersey with a penchant for song and album names that are way, way too long. The band is just one person who plays everything, which means their music will either be unrestrained genius or badly in need of direction. Their 2021 release Miasmic Eulogies Predicating an Eternal Nocturne earned some ripples due to the band’s interesting interpretations of a difficult sound and earned them a spot on Transcending Obscurities’ roster. Back for their third full-length release, Blackened Cerebral Rifts will hopefully show that this band knows how to twist music on its head.

The band’s approach to songwriting on Blackened Cerebral Rifts is hit and miss. They clearly know how to write riffs. Complementing the surprisingly interesting melodic lines is a dynamic approach to rhythm, including a stuttering, syncopated approach that appears throughout the record. When done right, this lets you lose yourself in Dead and Dripping’s vortex. When done poorly, it sounds like nothing is happening. The rhythmic, pseudo-Meshuggah lines near the end of “Aural Interference with Uncanny Subconscious Frequencies” provides an example of when this style doesn’t quite work.

Blackened Cerebral Rifts also lasts too long. While forty-four minutes and chance isn’t exactly a calamity foretold by prophecy and blood, this style lends itself to shorter releases. Grindcore is a different beast entirely, but there’s a reason that supposed full-length releases in that genre can be as short as ten or twenty minutes. Same concept applies here. After a bit, the songs start to blend together, and what works early gets lost later on.

In terms of performances, the drums are solid. There are a variety of styles displayed that work well and complement the supported music. Unfortunately, the tone sounds a bit off. This is more personal preference than something wrong, but the drum tones sometimes make me concerned that my headphones have come slightly unplugged. Not a big deal and you get used to it, but the production took a moment to get used to.

Same with the vocals. They are, I guess, fine. They sometimes end up too deep in the mix for my taste. This is against just a stylistic choice, but one that I’m not a big fan of. I’ve seen some people comparing the vocals to Demilich, which is a valid comparison, but I’m going to commit blasphemy here and say that I don’t like those vocals either. At minimum, the vocals are competently done and seemingly sound just the way Dead and Dripping want.

Outside of those specific issues, the production works for the record. Blackened Cerebral Rifts sounds open and heavy, with clear differences between the instruments. I wish the bass would do more than just support the guitars more often, but sometimes it’s enough that I can even hear the bass at all.

There’s a number at the bottom of the review, but I was a bit lost for a while as to what number to give. On Blackened Cerebral Rifts, Dead and Dripping create some nasty noises and moments of true genius. However, there are enough moves that don’t work for me and enough directionless moments that I’m not sure how long this record will truly stick around. Dead and Dripping remain a promising brutal death metal band with some roadblocks preventing them from taking over the genre. I recommend this to anyone who has ever complained about a band going soft, and to anyone who has gone far enough down the death metal rabbit hole that they assume that At the Gates and Incantation are household names. It’s worth the listen, warts and all.

Rating: 6/10

Tracklist: