Album Review: Recidivist – “Madness Malformed” (Death Metal)

Written by Kep

In case you haven’t noticed, there’s a lot of hardcore-influenced death metal out there these days. You can hardly throw an elbow in the pit without bashing some dude in a 200 Stab Wounds shirt, and that dude will probably clobber another couple people repping somebody on the Maggot Stomp roster before he hits the bar between sets. You’ve got your Tribal Gazes and your Terminal Nations and your Corpse Piles and your Bodyboxes and all the rest. The point is it takes a lot to stand out in the crowd right now, but that’s just what Recidivist are setting out to do with Madness Malformed. 

The Salt Lake City five-piece debuted back in 2022 with Caverns of the Dead, a quick four-tracker that laid the blueprint for their sound pretty darn clear: chuggy hardcore-influenced riffage, sudden tempo and meter changes, and a general disdain for anything technical. Madness Malformed is more of the same, but with shiny upgraded production and a total of nine tracks, rounding out to a more substantial but relatively brief half-hour. And it manages to be an enjoyable time, even if it’s not a unique listen by any measure—provided you like your death metal good and dumb (complimentary). 

First things first: the album sounds damn good from a production standpoint. Quite frankly, the production is one of its greatest strengths, and successfully props up some of the more uninspired material. The guitars have a hearty helping of that gnarly chainsaw toothiness, and the drums are crisp and punchy with very bright cymbals and snare. The aggressive loudness of Brad Boatright‘s master suits Recidivist’s aesthetic and up-and-coming status, and the mix is well-balanced (though I would’ve appreciated a little more in the bass department). Frontman Zachary Williams is appropriately front and center, but the guitars thankfully don’t give any ground. 

Now into the nitty gritty of these songs, which attempt to straddle the line between old school death and meathead hardcore. There are seven true songs here, as opener “Radiation Apocalypse” is a sampled intro featuring 80s horror vibes and “The Curse” is a synth interlude in the vein of TV-Crimes’ contributions to Fulci’s albums. The seven songs show a knack for filthy groove, with dozens of riffs built on chunky guitars and heavy square drumming tailor-made for headbanging. One of the band’s most frequently employed tactics is to spend a few cycles in one of those straightforward hardcore grooves and then shift into headlong chainsaw death, with scything longer lines behind a noisy veil of blast beats. It’s a good move, employed particularly well in the first chunk of the lengthy “Cryptic Nightmare”, for example, but it does feel a little bare on the inspiration front by album’s end. 

Don’t think I’m disparaging their product here too much, though, because some of this shit is damn fun. The smashmouth stomp that emerges from the opening churn of the title track made, for example, is perfect for throwing elbows in the pit and getting hyped up. There’s a riff about two minutes into “Ceremony of Flesh” with some belligerent syncopation—an element I wish they used more!—that backs right up against a slam pulled straight out of beatdown. Drummer Alex Humphries does some nifty stuff up on those bright cymbals that keep things lively, and those tremoloed chainsaw death riffs have killer energy. Truly, there’s no shortage of shit to bang your head to; these kids have a brand, and they’ve pinned it on their chest for better or worse. Their lyrics embrace vivid 80s horror, and mesh surprisingly well with that bold, headstrong aesthetic. 

I have one main gripe with Madness Malformed, and it’s a discourager of repeat listens. The problem is that some of the songs aren’t cohesive; too often it feels like Recidivist threw a bunch of riffs into a bucket, grabbed a few out, and called it a day on the songwriting. There’s plenty of good heavy shit to be found, clearly, but after a while everything sort of runs together because some of the tracks are more collections of riffs than actual songs. “Zombie Invocation” is one of the worst culprits, featuring several decent ideas that are just sort of jammed in there together, while “Altar of Skulls” is the best at avoiding the issue thanks to its tight 1:47 runtime. “Cryptic Nightmare”, “Drowned in a Swamp”, and closer “The Mortal Gate” all show varying degrees of focus, but even when the songwriting is more focused they don’t always stick the landing—“Cryptic Nightmare” drags badly through its nearly seven minutes. “The Mortal Gate”, conversely, is one of the stronger songs on the record and ends things on a high note. 

THE BOTTOM LINE

Maybe I’ve been a little hard on Recidivist here, but I think there’s potential on this record. Madness Malformed is straightforward bruiser death, in your face and ready to brawl, with clear love for its musical and aesthetic influences. It’s satisfying stuff with a mean edge, and if they can tighten up their songwriting these Utah boys might just have a chance at making some noise in the crowded death metal/hardcore space.