Castrator Coronation of the Grotesque Review
Castrator
Coronation of the Grotesque
Dark Descent Records
2025
Formed in 2013 by way of international waters and the death metal mecca of yesteryear, New York (ever heard of Immolation, Internal Bleeding, Suffocation? Thought so...) Castrator are continuing the long-standing tradition of (I hate this phrase) of all female metal bands. They are joining such luminaries in the field as Derketa, Mythic and Demonic Christ so you know you're in for the extreme side of things. The particular side they dwell on is decidedly East Coast early to mid-90’s death metal. Let's delve into their latest, Coronation of the Grotesque.
Coronation follows up their absolutely fantastic 2022 debut Defiled In Oblivion, and this is where I personally became aware of them and in so doing, became an instant fan. The band consists of Robin Mazen (Gruesome, Derketa ) - Bass, Carolina Perez - Drums, Clarissa Badini - Vocals and newcomer/shredder Sara Loerlein - Guitars. What Castrator does so effectively is turn the genre’s mirror on itself. Death metal, especially brutal death metal and more recently “slam” all tend to be, traditionally very unkind to women in the lyrics, artwork, everything. You could easily say it's pretty misogynist. While it's not exactly in the same vein and all about killing dudes, there's a bit of that, but also has lyrical content that points out the evils of man/men/the world in general. For this album especially, there is a focus on a wide range of historical and societal themes that reflect on injustice, victimization, and human suffering. I say go for it.
Go for it they do. This release is a very noticeable step forward from Defiled in that the production is less dark and murky with more dynamics and is less bottom heavy throughout, while maintaining a nice balance of the low and high end. Crisp, clear and fittingly intense is the order of the mix here. John Tardy (Obituary) handled the bass at Redneck Studios in FL while guitars and vocals were done by Jordan Milner at Obsidian Audio, additional guitars by Taylor Nordberg (Deicide) at Smoke and Mirrors Productions, and drums by Noah Buchanan (Nunslaughter) at Mercinary Studios, where Buchanan also handled mixing and mastering. In addition to all of this, well known underground death metal artist/phenom Jon Zig handled the cover art. The pedigree of the band and those involved in helping them put it together reads like a list of extreme metal luminaries.
So, by now you're probably saying it asking, “All this seems awesome, but what's it SOUND like?” and that's fair. Castrator, as I mentioned earlier, has a very pronounced East Coast bend. Those of you well-schooled in the genre know those hallmarks are low/high growls and screams, somewhat technical and grooving chunky riffs, blasts, double kicks and thrashy tempos followed by plodding breakdowns and utmost brutality. These elements are contained in these ten songs in spades. Clarissa’s vocals are properly deep, and the guitar riffs/leads from Sarah anchor the songs. I can't pick out favorites as I listened to this thing from front to back twice before I even realized I had. This album is engrossing and song oriented with old school flag bearing at its finest. For the sticklers, I'll say that my personal picks for standouts are opener “Fragments of Defiance”, “I Am Eunuch”, “Covenant of Deceit” and near the album's end “Discordant Rumination”. Speaking of closers, they churn out a blistering masterful guitar soloing cover of Exodus’ “Metal Command” to wrap things up! Castrator are not merely a band of women, screw that-they’re just a kick ass BAND, period. With Coronation of the Grotesque, they up their own ante and can easily be considered one of the US’s elite death metal outfits now.
~TB
RIYL- Immolation, Death, Suffocation, Internal Bleeding, Dehumanize