Welcome to The Saw’s Butcher Shop! Have I mentioned how much Ya Girl loves Death Metal? Particularly, New School Death Metal? You know that I have! It is the most satisfying, and it is the source of my happiness. Increasing my pleasure, on June 16, 2023, Creeping Death released Boundless Domain (MNRK). The southern-fried groovy riffs of Death Metal bands like Obituary, Frozen Soul, and Tribal Gaze, etc. are my favorite! Creeping Death have quickly become masters of this southern style, too. And their new album is snapping necks with the best of them!

Ya Girl loves all things Metal. But there is something about my generation’s version of the genre – and especially the sub-genre, Death Metal – that is exciting, plentiful, and (obviously) in demand. Creeping Death have been a favorite of mine even since I first heard 2018s, Specter of War (Entertainment One). 2019s Wretched Illusions (Entertainment One) was a real breakthrough album for the band as its brand of Death Metal was blowing-up in several areas around the country. I had the opportunity to do a video interview with Creeping Death, back in my college radio days, for WKNC, and they were really awesome guys! In 2021, Creeping Death dropped The Edge of Existence (Entertainment One), an EP that showcased an evolution in the band’s sound [check out my review of the record, here].

That evolution continues on Boundless Domain. They’re still that southern-fried New School Death Metal that I love; groove and bounce-riffs are the name of the game, but the evolution is found in song structure and (really) the maturity of the band’s sound. This new record really showcases Creeping Death’s talent and pure genius in function and delivery – both in crushing riffs, true Death Metal drumming, and vocal attack. Where one could once compare Creeping Death to the likes of the OGs, Bolt Thrower – especially with those modulated vocals – now the band seem to be demarking something different in this crowded sub-genre. For example, the vocal delivery is less about that European influenced (wicked) echo-style gutterals, and more a vicious deep gutteral / Hardcore Holler fusion. It’s awesome, and adds a new horrid layer to the crushing riffs. I love it!

The beautiful riffs found on Boundless Domain, themselves, have also evolved. It is here that one can sense the maturity (aka, smoother time changes, transitions, and main riff placements) in song structure. So, usually a band draws you into their album by its song arrangement. This record is 36 minutes in length, but because of song placement, plays much more interestingly. Let me explain: 

The title track comes first, and is a bruising banger of a hook! It’s the Creeping Death that you’ve come to expect – slow, crushing intro with a mid-paced riff that really bounces. As it so happens in Death Metal, the melody is found in the guitar solos (rather than the vocals). “Intestinal Wrap” is an incredible track, which introduces the evolution of the band on this record, and features the mighty Corpsegrinder (Cannibal Corpse). It contains a completely different song structure and is a bad-ass banger! “Vitrified Earth” changes things up, again, in structure. It marks a very dark turn in the delivery of both the vocals and the riff. The middle of the song contains an 80s style time change, with a modern NSDM twist. It’s really good stuff!

The next three tracks – “The Parthian Shot,” “Creators Turned into Prey,” and “Cursed” – are vicious. The main riff moves throughout the songs, changing pace and place several times, while the purely Death Metal, smooth double-bass holds the chaos together. Oh, and the slam riffs, power chugging, and grooves are tremendous! 

Boundless Domain closes with three tracks that are more (again) evolutionary than they are experimental. “Remnants of the Old Gods” marks Creeping Death’s expression in a new direction. “Looming” (one of my favorites) has a haunting melody, a wicked riff, and horrifying vocal delivery. And “The Common Breed” is (probably) the farthest removed of all the tracks on the album [It reminds me, a lot, of the new school material that the OGs, Obituary, added to their new record]. These three have a completely different structure than the first six; I would say, even more different than anything Creeping Death have done before. They are structured like classic Thrash, but with the NSDM influence, and unrelenting deep register gutteral/hollers. It’s really an interesting fusion that flows nicely, and smoothly, together; giving Boundless Domain a singular feel, even though some new styles are being incorporated. It’s beautiful!

Boundless Domain is a great record from Creeping Death. It adds another expression to the modern Death Metal arena; another layer to the thick depth of Death Metal. It doesn’t get much better than this!

Rating 9/10! The beauty and severity of NSDM!

Favorite Songs: Intestinal Wrap, The Parthian Shot, Looming

Stay Metal,

THE SAW