Album Review: Fulci – Duck Face Killings (20 Buck Spin)

Inspired by infamous Italian director Lucio Fulci across their catalogue of music, Italian death metal band, Fulci return with their 4th bloodthirsty full length, and first for 20 Buck Spin, ‘Duck Face Killings’. Paying homage to the director’s infamous films, ‘The New York Ripper’, it will be released on August 9th, 2024.

It’s easy to think the furore over The New York Ripper was hyperbolic as its release came during a period of serious moral panic all over the world. Yet even though the reaction to it back then was over the top, its infamy is deserved and it continues to be a controversial piece of art today.

Yet, it and the director responsible for such a repugnant piece, also continues to be hugely inspirational for others, with none as bold as the band named after the director himself.

This is not our first rodeo with Fulci and we have found their death metal ways to be suitably twisted, garishly wicked, and thoroughly enjoyable. However, this latest effort might be their most colourful yet and the colour seeping out of it is red.

Happily, you don’t need to have any familiarity with The New York Ripper to enjoy the extremes of this album. It’s a death metal record, and with that, comes death metal things. Razor riffs that slice through flesh keenly, serrated slams that snap bones in painful fashion, grim and seedy hooks that make you feel dirty, and an overall perverse intensity born out of nihilism. As far as capturing the mood of the film, combining that with death metal extremes, and adding vibrant atmospheres, Fulci deliver something special here.

That being said, part of the fun and the reason why this album has staying power, is because of the association with The New York Ripper. It’s both a fun and interesting rummage around in the guts of the album to find the references, to experience the vividness of the film in aural form, and to hear how Fulci were inspired to make something so egregiously extreme. It’s a fine album on its own, but when paired with the film it’s paying homage to, it’s much better experience overall.

So, what delightful horrors do we have to enjoy across the length of Duck Face Killings? There’s an array to chose from. Belligerent efforts like Vile Butchery, sinful monstrosities like Fucked with a Broken Bottle, sickeningly savage efforts likes Slashereality, anarchic noise mongers like Sadistic Murder, and shock-inducing, horror laden, and vicious moments like Stabbed, Gutted and Loved. Just a handful that encapsulate the violent levels that Fulci go to on this album.

Fulci – Duck Face Killings Track Listing:

1. Vile Butchery
2. A Blade in The Dark
3. Fucked with a Broken Bottle
4. Morbid Lust
5. Maniac Unleashed
6. Knife
7. Slashereality
8. Human Scalp Condition
9. Duck Face Killings
10. Rotten Apple
11. Sadistic Murder
12. Lo Squartatore
13. Stabbed, Gutted and Loved
14. Il Miele Del Diavolo

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