Mastication - Demo # 2 (1991)

I would have to say that this was an improvement over Mastication's first demo, which was decent in its own right, but this time around the band sounds that much heavier by deciding to leave out some of the goofier elements found on their debut such as the down picked chugs that just sounded completely amateurish to these ears, especially in comparison to what else was going on in Sweden at the time. That down-picked chug thing can actually get on my nerves if not done properly and convincingly. You not only need the right sound but you have to pick the right notes as well and I felt that Mastication failed to do so the first time around. This time, however, Mastication wisely decided to leave the goofy chugging at the door in order to concentrate more on atmosphere and and overall more "evil" vibe. Still heavy, mind you, but with that much more "flavor", if you will. An infinitely more complete package than its predecessor. It's too bad that they called it a day afterwards as this demo really put them in the same ranks as the more polished acts of that time. Personally, I think these guys had way more going on. musically, than Grave and Unleashed, both of whom have gone on to enjoy lengthy and rather successful careers. Oh well... "and so is life".