Red Is the Color of Ripping Death

It is no secret death metal is not my favorite genre of metal, but sometimes I need something completely dirty and mean with over-the-top speed and hellish evil and, lately, Nunslaughter's Red is the Color of Ripping Death has been hitting the spot. The album is full of short, sharp songs loaded with pounding riffs, gravel-strewn growls, and neck-snapping breakdowns from the first note to the last. There's nothing original here but the songwriting is well above average, and the energy is enough to make the most timid fan put his or her head down and wade into the pit. Songs like the title track and "Black Cat Hanging" have just the right amount of melody and catchiness combined with unfiltered aggression to make any metal fan bang their head, genre labels be damned. The whole album is solid without a weak track, but while most certainly fast, doesn't go by in a hyper-speed blur. It only clocks in at around 35 minutes but it's a full 35 minutes that will leave your heart pounding as you reach for the repeat button.