The opening track, “The Hippocratic Oath”, starts out with some creepy piano music that gave me the impression that I was entering a place where no sane human should visit. After a few seconds of that there is a sample of a deranged surgeon giving his views on the medical profession followed by a sick little solo and a very chunky instrumental piece. We are then treated to Impaled’s trademark sound which hinges right on the edge of Carcass worship (“Symphonies of Sickness”/”Reek of Putrefaction” era) but maintains enough originality to keep it fresh and unique.

As the title suggests the lyrics on this deal primarily with medical horror and gruesome death and none of the gory details are left out. While throwing around a lot of medical terminology I find it nice that I don’t have to consult a dictionary to grasp the majority of the lyrics, something I always had to do with bands like Carcass and General Surgery. Vocals are handles by three members, each of whom spews forth a different style of vocal terror, creating visions of three rotting corpses who are very much animated (and hungry) rather than simply decomposing like so many others. Guitar work is solid and memorable, ranging from all-out brutality to mid tempo stuff that shows that Sean McGrath and Andrew LaBarre know their instruments well and love them almost as much as their scalpels and other instruments of pain. Drummer Raul Varela and bassist Ross Sewage provide a strong rhythm section which fills out the bands sound and complements it rather than overshadowing everything else. The CD layout is very nice and comes with two covers. The one on the top hides the gore with bandages and the one underneath is a wonderful portrait of medical malpractice.

Impaled has grown quite a bit since their last album and are beginning to show that they are much more than a Carcass clone. Their studio work is almost as good as their live show which will leave a lasting impression on an audience. Fans of gore/grind bands such as (older) Carcass will definitely want to make this a well played part of their collection, this is surgical malevolence set to music that will leave you wishing for anesthesia!

Don’t forget to get out and support Impaled on the road in the near future supporting label mates Incantation at a club near you!

Track list:
01. The Hippocratic Oath
02. Dead Inside
03. Raise the Stakes
04. Operating Theater
05. Choke on It
06. We Belong Dead
07. The Worms Crawl In
08. To Die For
09. Rest in Faeces
10. Carpe Mortem
(Necropolis/Deathvomit records)

Rating: 8 /10