Album Review: Torso – Brain Cells (APF Records)

From the mind of Graham Bywater, frontman and guitar virtuoso of defunct UK metal legends Possessor, comes Torso. A project described as the aural equivalent of a dayglo Dario Argento movie shot during an apocalypse in the early 90s. The project made its debut in January 2022 with ‘A Crash Course in Terror’, and now Torso returns with ‘Brain Cells’. Out on September 13th, 2024, via APF Records.

When Torso crawled out of the grave following Possessor going six feet under, there were few expectations. Even though Graham Bywater is considered an immense talent, the promise of horror-splattered grindhouse rock with a DIY ethos was a bit of an unknown. So, the debut album ‘A Crash Course in Terror’ was approached with a certain amount of trepidation. Of course, we all know how that turned out, as it left menacing grins on faces (read our review here).

The thirst for more garish noise was immediate though, and Torso has kept us waiting. Finally, it’s Brain Cells and a chance to sate that thirst, albeit temporarily. This new album offering up eight slices of addictive horror and boundary pushing genre experimentation. It’s as raw and DIY as expected, but that just enhances the feeling of uneasiness that sits across this record like a bulbous vein.

Graham Bywater’s influences are wide and varied, and this new record is more than just a splatter-piece. You’ll hear everything from rock to punk to thrash to grunge to hardcore, and more across the album. Yet, it’s all about weaving those influences and styles rather than jumping from one to the other. It’s the kind of creative experimentation that comes from a place of love, dedication, and no small amount of insanity.

When you’re dead, you’re dead.

With that line, Torso bursts out of the crypt with fire burning in the eyes of the body currently inhabited. You Belong in Hell isn’t just a good song title, it’s a summation of the terror and intensity that makes up this riffy and groovy opener.

As good as that start is though, Blood Frenzy is the one that really gets the heart beating fast as that rawness really starts to shine. You won’t hear a track as deliciously dark and dangerous as this all year long. What started as a slow drip is becoming a torrent and the master of gore himself (a sampled Herschell Gordon Lewis) is more than happy to open the floodgates with the menacing instrumental that is Savage Magic.

With heavy rhythms and punk vitality, the screams can be heard throughout Deep Space Death Trap. The chorus of this track is an absolute banger, and even though it is thicker overall, it is quite accessible. Then along comes Skin Crawl / Trepanator to showcase the sound of lethargic groove, swarming dread, and one of the strangest turns on the albums so far. A discombobulating turn that might prove to be too much for some, but fans (if there are any) of an oddball 1992 Reanimator ‘spoof’ might be able to relate to.

Happily, it’s all a bit more ‘normal’ following that. Or as normal as it gets for Torso on this album as Hex Pest rips and tears through the soft parts of the body with glee, Brain Cells delivers synthy horror gold (it’s expected, right?), and Drop the Casket hits a high (or should that be low?) point when it comes to the coarse and raw edge that the whole album has. Torso hits hard here, across another set of varied efforts, but in an explicably heavy way. Graham Bywater’s imagination is on fire here and the end result is something more thought out and original sounding than the debut record.

Torso – Brain Cells Track Listing:

1. You Belong in Hell
2. Blood Frenzy
3. Savage Magic (featuring Herschell Gordon Lewis)
4. Deep Space Death Trap
5. Skin Crawl / Trepanator
6. Hex Pest
7. Brain Cells
8. Drop The Casket

Links

Spotify | Bandcamp | Instagram | APF Records