Vacuous are one of a wave of disgusting bands coming out of the UK’s raging sty of a death metal scene. Having released their debut Dreams of Dysphoria on London’s Me Saco Un Ojo in 2022 following 2 years in the slimy underground of London. Three years later, the band have signed to the monolith of global metal in Relapse Records. Yet, over the last few years, Relapse have released records ranging from shoegaze with Nothing to hardcore with Candy while ploughing on with their relentless reissues. With In His Blood, Vacuous have managed to polish their sound while retaining their stomach-churning death metal signature.
In the album’s description, guitarist Michael Brodsky is quoted as saying ‘back in death metal’s formative days, with bands like Autopsy, Obituary, Incantation, none of those bands sounded like each other: they were just pushing their collective influences together to the extreme. I think we’re still doing the same thing.‘ In His Blood, then, is a cauldron of a range of influences. More than that, though, it captures the spirit of the old times of death metal. While all of the above bands are unquestionably death metal, they do sound different but what they do bring is excitement, energy and a large dose of fun to listen to. “Hunger” came from an idea of The Cure making death metal, much of the album is influenced by the attitude of spontaneity of Converge. Vacuous have used the breadth of their tastes and ideas to make an album that is a whole lot of fun to listen to.
The album begins with a caterwauling scream and the band rollicking at full chat. Blast beats, full speed riffs and aggressive buzzing bass typify much of this album. Throughout the album’s 32 minutes, we’re treated to a bloody offering of riff after riff while vocalist Jo Chen summons the acid from the pit of his stomach. It’s immediately clear that the bigger budget of Relapse gave the band the opportunity to plunge themselves into the tone of the album (something which even Kurt Ballou and Converge would be happy with). The rumbling of Zak Mullard’s bass jumps out of whatever speaker you’re listening into, a blunt force to your ear drum.
None of this is to say that the album is one-track; its aggression and brutality are clear to see in the pure pace and vitriol on offer. Yet, this isn’t a death metal album devoid of melody or grooves. As soon as single “Stress Positions”, the pace drops for a groovy and melodious bridge with the softer side of the guitars taking over. Vacuous actually give a lot of thought to the balance of this album, something which also helps the album stay exciting. Again, the bands that influenced Vacuous for this album were all original, exciting and took risks with their music. They sounded like only themselves, a trait which has been inherited on In His Blood.
The goth inspiration takes centre stage on “Hunger” is another sign of this, but the introduction and melodic touches are weaving between the dense chugs and range-defying squeals from Chen. Songs like “Public Humiliation” further vary the pace and the idea with a defrosting set of blast beats thrown into the dirge of the guitars, again beneath the blood-curdling vocals of Chen who does largely steal the show without being overly flashy or ever coming off as show-offy.
Another exciting influence is that from punk, especially on the more straight-forward “Contraband”. Written about the 39 Vietnamese migrants suffocated in a lorry while attempting to seek safety, the song has an obvious and angry political statement while it’s three-chord progressions and barked chorus harken it back to London’s punk scene instead of its death metal counterpart. Death metal largely came from punk (I think of the d-beats and immediacy of Celtic Frost’s Morbid Tales), so its weaving back into the genre four decades later is welcome. With verses detailing the toil of those killed while highlighting an overall problem (‘frigid concrete beds, filled with sightless men, you don’t eat, your stomach split, lungs like lead, 39 dead again’), it’s a standout on the album.
When reaching the final two tracks, there are still plenty more great moments to come, and it’s an album which doesn’t feel long or overstay its welcome with its 8 tracks. The double-time speed and enduring breakdowns of “Immersion” are the heaviest moments on the album, and in a song around 3-and-a-half minutes is one of the longer period of any track. Closer “No Longer Human” is the longest on the album and also the grandest. It’s a worthy closer for an album with the force of In His Blood, while extending much of their previous structures and further exploring how far they can go, it loses none of their force. “No Longer Human” actually allows more variance in the riffs, rhythms, and of course Chen’s screams within a 5-minute block to remain exciting to the end.
In His Blood, then, eschews many of the stock death metal bands of today and bites through the fence of Relapse’s own tendency to reissue to grow their own sound and deliver an unhealthy, horrendous slab of brilliantly executed death metal. While a serious album dealing with violence, voyeurism and the dark politics of our world, Vacuous have mostly concocted an album that is great fun to listen to.
