Jungle Rot is one of those bands that don’t get mentioned quite as much as some of the earlier US death metal artists, but at just shy of thirty-five years since their formation there’s a lot to be said for the consistency they’ve brought from album to album. Their core approach has been one that is oriented towards bludgeoning mid-tempo grooves and faster thrash infused moments, and each full length has gone for a different balance of the two. This remains true for album number twelve Cruel Face of War, which retains the beefier production values from their more recent work while also throwing a bit more speed in the mix. It’s definitely familiar, but the writing is consistent from track to track and makes this a strong showing from this veteran band.
A short intro with jungle sounds kicks things off, which feels like a throwback to the types of intros tracks the band was incorporating on Dead and Buried and Fueled by Hate. “Apocalyptic Dawn” then comes roaring in with huge riffs and a decent amount of speed before transitioning over to slower grooves. Jungle Rot has been moving towards this speed first, groove second approach for a little while now, and this opener felt to me like a cross between the band’s established sound crossed with a little bit of Vader and Unleashed. It’s a high energy track that starts things off strong, as the grooves will have you nodding along while the faster passages have this larger and more powerful sound. From there you get a nice blend of the two styles from song to song, as “Maniacal” goes for slow and chunky grooves for its entirety while “Suffer in Silence” is one of the more thrash-oriented pieces the album has to offer. The approach is still very old-school but like the last few Jungle Rot full lengths the production values give that fuller, more modern sound. This makes later cuts like “Blade of Betrayal” and “Horrors Vile” hit especially hard, as the drum and bass are especially punchy and the guitars have space to contribute additional weight and grit to that foundation. Admittedly like a lot of the group’s discography there are some moments that run together due to similar patterns, but there was something about Cruel Face of War that stood out to me a bit more than 2022’s A Call to Arms. I think it’s the added emphasis on speed and huge peaks alongside the grooves that work better this time around, and it’s kept me coming back.
Dave Matrise has one of those growling styles that’s very distinctive, and even thirty years after he first appeared behind the mic his performance is as heavy hitting as ever. I’ve always found the fullness of his pitch like an American version of Peter from Vader, though there are distinctive differences between the two, and Matrise’s performance has that immense feel no matter what speed Jungle Rot’s material is moving at. Tracks like “Maniacal” live up to their names with added distortion and some backing yells that really put things over the top and keep the energy at a high from beginning to end. Jungle Rot’s had some guest contributions throughout their discography, and this time around Benediction’s Dave Ingram adds his lower growls to “Horrors Vile”, going back and forth with Matrise in ways that make this track one of the album’s highlights.
There’s something to be said for bands that have locked in their sound from an early age and continued to deliver consistent material from album to album, and Jungle Rot fits that category perfectly. If you’re looking for something drastically different on each release you won’t find that here, but much like Cannibal Corpse these guys do small tweaks within the established old-school death metal framework and do it in ways that will scratch that itch. In that regard Cruel Face of War is a success, as while it does still have some tracks that blur together the quality of the riffs and vocals stood out to me a bit more than its immediate predecessor. Cruel Face of War is available from Unique Leader Records.
-Review by Chris Dahlberg