"Flies Will Starve" sounds like a vile rampage of death. Mumakil is no stranger to the world of grindcore or how it operates; the band has built quite the following on playing an abrasive, sadistic style of grind which Mumakil has apparently dubbed "blastcore." Obviously a genre-tag like that has nothing to do with blast beats or gravity blasts or any blast-related technique that would otherwise be found in a grindcore release. Nah I'm joking, they're everywhere. The Mumakil tribe delivers twenty-four skull-shattering pieces of grotesque violence throughout this thirty-six minute onslaught, and this is pretty much a staple example of a grindcore group that knows what it's doing. No gimmicks or tomfoolery; just unrelenting punishment. Did I mention this has blast beats?I'll admit that I'm not the biggest advocate of this kind of thing, although I do enjoy the occasional beating via Napalm Death, Pig Destroyer, Rotten Sound, other essentials. Mumakil strikes me as a hyper-aggressive member of an already hyper-aggressive club, and they certainly know how to kick the intensity beyond the dial's threshold. The brutality is constant, like townsfolk burning in a flood of napalm while artillery shells rain down on their homesthe slaughter of cacophony never ceases. Despite the blast-related addiction and barrage of sound, there are handfuls of intriguing processes going on underneath Mumakil's attack that are retainable. There are mountains of beefy riffs shooting out of Jιrτme Pellegrini's guitar, which is pretty much an auditory assault rifle. Some noteworthy variations from the beaming riffs, although sparse, include thrashing chugs on "War Therapist" and the technical torturing during the elegant "F**ktards Parade."
Not to imply that the riffs make anything any less blast-based or varied, however, because most of "Flies Will Starve" is a permanent cyclone of noise. The vocals are authoritative barks, which sound fine in the grindcore setting, especially against the rainbows and kittens within Mumakil's lovely sound. I'm really hard-pressed to pick a favorite because the stellar songs are all superb, but I will say that it sort of feels excessive cramming in twenty-four anthems that are all geared in the same infrastructure. There are a few tracks which blend into the constant battle, and it occasionally feels a little lazy just blasting over everything. Not that I'm complaining about the final product, but a little variation to any degree would've been beneficial. Did I mention this has blast beats?
Now that I've had my chance to complain peevishly, I'll say that the comprehensive gist of "Flies will Starve" is good fun for the whole family. Nothing but menacing, torturous grindcore from one of the blueprint's rising leaders within this collection of depravity. Certainly the most appealing quality of the release is its nonstop sonic blitzkrieg tunneling through the ears of its victim at an ungodly pace. With all but one song lasting under two minutes, Mumakil avoids milking riffs or patterns for the sole purpose of doing sothey say what they need to and add nothing that would've otherwise oversaturated this invasion of clattering noise and destruction. Hope you like blast beats!