Article By: Pat ‘Riot’ Whitaker ‡ Edited By: Leanne Ridgeway
GURT guarantee the hurt shall come, indeed! The London, U.K.-based bashers released their latest incendiary salvo of sludge mania, ‘Skullossus‘, some several months ago.
It somehow shuffled out of sight in my ongoing review queue, but never fear (well, fear GURT) – it has resurfaced and is just as volatile now as it was at the time of its initial release. Since their start in 2010, GURT has unleashed increasingly more disturbing music and this album continues that tradition.
Infused with the self-same brutality that fueled a slew of earlier EPs and Splits, ‘Skullosus‘ takes that dense, damaging determination to heart here. These self-proclaimed progenitors of “party doom” are truly loose off the chain with crushing pummelings such as “Battlepants“.
The guys going haywire here, Gareth Kelly / Growth (vokills), Rich Williams / Sedulurt (guitar), Dave Blakemore / Spice (bass) and Bill Jacobs / The Scorpion (drums), really display a diverse range of influences throughout this album. Their knack for amusingly titled tracks may entertain at first, but when subjected to songs like “Double-Barreled Shot Pun“, “Meowing At The Fridge” or “Jon Garseeya Later“, that hilarity is quickly obliterated from memory as their sonic barrage batters you senseless.
Eleven songs altogether, with some less than two minutes playing time, but they do not skimp on severity. The spoken word intro, “Welcome To The Shit Show“, sets the mood with a cautionary commentary, but the quick-hitting “Existence Is Pain” instrumental and “Broken Heart Heroin Man” are fiercely fantastic.
Sludged-out, grooving, and uncompromisingly abrasive, GURT go for the throat as their own throat provides hellish vocal proclamations. There are odd touches at times, a horn section at one point, a faux Beavis & Butthead sample, but altogether, ‘Skullossus‘ is massive.
Stream GURT‘s ‘Skullosus‘ below via the embed, it is currently available as an NYP (Name Your Price) item. You can also travel the direct route to their Bandcamp page here.
