What. The. Fuck. This is the inevitable reaction everyone familiar with Vorum’s debut album Poisoned Void has upon their first listen of the band’s latest offering, Current Mouth. Whereas the former was a no frills, catchy slab of OSDM, the latter is something else entirely.
It’s still old school, but from the start it’s clear that something is different. Namely, it’s even more old school sounding and twice as hard to categorize than its predecessor. While Poisoned Void did draw on a range of influences, it still fit pretty snug in the OSDM box. But the attack this time around is decidedly more frenzied, frenetic, rabid and any other word you can use to describe a release that just doesn’t quit from start to finish.
Evil riffs and catchy, laser-sharp leads still abound here, but channeled through an aggressive, battering style approach that is very Death Thrash in nature. Yet, it goes deeper than that. Turning the clock way back this time around, the off kilter riff changes and fierce, driving pace of the music even brings to mind Horrified by almighty Repulsion. So, in essence, what you have on Current Mouth is an OSDM band reverting back even further. Production is thinner, rawer and the music is, as I’ve more or less spelled out, a conglomerate of the earlier beginnings of Death, Thrash and Grind.
Talk about a swift kick to the balls. I actually put off listening to this EP for whatever reason, maybe because I thought it would predictably sound a lot like their debut with some slight variation – but damn, was I wrong. This little 20 minute EP is as jam packed as most full lengths, as Vorum seem to be content on Current Mouth to chew you up and spit you out for ever underestimating them. Whether it’s the opening track, “Tri Ennial,” the title track, or the crushing closer, “Hungry Wounds,” Vorum goes above and beyond here to harass your sense of categorization with an onslaught of the most brutal sort of old school sounds all rolled into one. If you thought their debut was mundane in any way whatsoever, do yourself a favor and check out Current Mouth. You won’t even know what hit you.
