CHUGGER – Human Plague
- by Matt Coe
- Posted on 30-04-2015
Worry creeps in when bands mold two distinct sub-genres of metal, as Sweden’s Chugger choose to do for their debut album "Human Plague". The 11 tracks traverse melodic death and groove lines, making things very meaty at certain times and then very basic and slam oriented at others. Guitarists Fredrik Carlstedt and Robert Bjärmyr lay down a thick set of rhythms, occasionally doubling up for those harmonic hook highlights on "Virus" and "Five Feet Down", but the raspy vocals of David Dahl along with very simplified tempos at times on "Rust" or "Endgame" veer them down a dangerous, monotonous Six Feet Under-ish path that would be ill advised for long term staying power.
At 53 minutes, "Human Plague" would have been a touch more appealing if a couple of tracks hit the cut out bin, but the Swedes could have crossover bite for those who want a little bit more SFU/ black album Metallica punch to their death metal songs.