After immersing yourself in hundreds of studios worth of Sodom, Venom, Possessed, Hellhammer, Blasphemy, Von, and the like, this is exactly what you get. Vomitor is one of the most psychotic bands Australia has produced in the last decade — truly a madhouse of a country. I first encountered Vomitor on the 2004 split Outbreak of Evil alongside Toxic Holocaust, Bestial Mockery, and Nocturnal, with their track "Cry From the Underground" — also the second song on that album. Since then, they’ve held a special place for me. They serve up an insatiable cocktail by masterfully blending Speed, Thrash, Black, and Death Metal.
Although formed in 1999, Vomitor spent their early years releasing demos and an EP until their first full-length, Bleeding the Priest. Their latest album, Devils Poison (2010), is currently waiting in my queue, but I can confidently say Bleeding the Priest is arguably one of the most brutal recordings to come out of the entire Australian metal scene. Raw Speed Metal foundations scraped over with Old School Thrash, Black, and Death metal. Lyrically, they’re full of devil worship, anti-religious themes, and Australia’s staple — war. The sound is murky, dark, and furious. And here stands Vomitor, defiling priests — no, all clergymen — with relentless brutality.
For 35 minutes across 8 tracks, Vomitor rips through their sonic carnage. Their influences are clear: early Sodom, Possessed, and of course, Australia’s cult legends Slaughter Lord have all left their mark on this record. Vocals channel that same guttural, grim, and eerily reverberating cavernous evil you hear in Slaughter Lord, Von, and Sodom’s In the Sign of Evil. While mostly growled death metal vocals, there are occasional black metal screams as well. Typical speed metal riffs morph into black/thrash textures and evil death metal riffs reminiscent of Possessed’s legacy. The riffs show a strong influence from German Speed/Thrash bands. The absence of chords and the Hellhammer-esque sound give the recording a more hellish and raw edge.
Drums keep pace with the guitars’ speed, especially the cymbals, creating controlled chaos — dizzying yet deliberately unpolished. Sharp, fast solos decorate the songs, which mostly run at breakneck speed but occasionally slip into short doomy moments. My personal favorites are "Cry from the Underground," where the vocals reach their most DEMONIC state and the speed never ceases, and "Bleeding the Priest," showcasing an intense blend of drums, vocals, guitars, and lyrics that push the track to the forefront.
The production is as raw and filthy as it gets for 2002 — no polished gloss smiling at your face here. Vomitor fully honors the legacy of their forebears. Any fan of hellish, growling, devilish, alcoholic speed/thrash/black/death metal would be foolish to miss this.