Symphonies of Sickness

Symphonies of Sickness
Studio album by Carcass
Released	4 December 1989
Recorded	July – August 1989 at the Slaughterhouse Studios
Genre	Death metal, goregrind
Length	43:10
Label	Earache, Combat (US)
Producer	Colin Richardson, Carcass
Carcass chronology
Reek of Putrefaction (1988) Symphonies of Sickness (1989) The Peel Sessions (1989)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]

Symphonies of Sickness is the second album by British extreme metal band Carcass. It was released through Earache Records on 4 December 1989. This is Michael Amott's favorite Carcass album.

Musical style

While this album still retains the goregrind style of Reek of Putrefaction, the sound became more characteristic of death metal.^[2]

Reception

In February 2009, Symphonies of Sickness was ranked number 4 in Terrorizer's list of essential European grindcore albums.^[3]

Releases

The original CD release contained 16 bonus tracks taken from the Reek of Putrefaction album. Some editions also contain "Genital Grinder II" and "Hepatic Tissue Fermentation" from the Pathological compilation. The album was reissued in 1996 with a censored outer cover proclaiming "Original artwork contained inside". It was later reissued in 2008, as part of reissuing of all of Carcass's albums to tie in with their reunion. This version included the Symphonies of Sickness demo as bonus tracks on one side of a dualdisc, while the DVD side featured the second part of an extended documentary titled The Pathologist's Report Part II: Propagation. Later editions of this reissue contain the songs on a CD and the documentary on a separate DVD. This reissue was presented in a 12-panel digipak with full lyrics and artwork.

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Reek of Putrefaction"	4:11
2.	"Exhume to Consume"	3:51
3.	"Excoriating Abdominal Emanation"	4:32
4.	"Ruptured in Purulence"	4:11
5.	"Empathological Necroticism"	5:46
6.	"Embryonic Necropsy and Devourment"	5:14
7.	"Swarming Vulgar Mass of Infected Virulency"	3:11
8.	"Cadaveric Incubator of Endoparasites"	3:24
9.	"Slash Dementia"	3:23
10.	"Crepitating Bowel Erosion"	5:30
11.	"Reek of Putrefaction" (Bonus track on the 2008 reissue, taken from the Symphonies of Sickness demo.)
12.	"Slash Dementia" (Bonus track on the 2008 reissue, taken from the Symphonies of Sickness demo.)
13.	"Embryonic Necropsy and Devourment" (Bonus track on the 2008 reissue, taken from the Symphonies of Sickness demo.)
14.	"Cadaveric Incubator of Endoparasites" (Bonus track on the 2008 reissue, taken from the Symphonies of Sickness demo.)
15.	"Ruptured in Purulence" (Bonus track on the 2008 reissue, taken from the Symphonies of Sickness demo.)
16.	"Crepitating Bowel Erosion" (Bonus track on the 2008 reissue, taken from the Symphonies of Sickness demo.)

Personnel

• Jeff Walker – vocals, bass guitar
• Bill Steer – vocals, lead guitar
• Ken Owen – drums, vocals

Charts

Chart (1989)	Peak position
UK Indie Chart[4]	16

References

1. Raggett, Ned. "Symphonies of Sickness - Carcass". Allmusic. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
2. J. Purcell, Natalie (5 May 2003). McFarland, ed. Death Metal Music: The Passion and Politics of a Subculture. pp. 21–22. ISBN 0-7864-1585-1. Retrieved 18 December 2011. Carcass' debut album Reek of Putrefaction is said to have spurred the British Grindcore with its precise riffs and outrageous guitar solos. [...] Carcass' following album, Symphonies of Sickness, featured slower and catchier songs, and showed the band's movement into the Death Metal genre.
3. Badin, Olivier (2009). "Essential Albums|Europe". Terrorizer Magazine (180): 54.
4. Lazell, Barry (1997). Indie Hits 1980-1989. Cherry Red Books. Retrieved 5 September 2014.