We all know the story of Entrails by now. How they formed back in 1990/91 at the height of the Swedish death metal explosion when bands like Entombed, Dismember, Grave and Unleashed were releasing classic debut after classic debut.The band for one reason or another never had the chance to release anything, and although there were attempts at the time to record a demo, the results were unsatisfactory. So, in the end, the band called it a day. The band was finally resurrected in 2008, when Jimmy Lundqvist (guitars), found some old Entrails recordings in a tape collection and decided that they deserved to be released as they should have been originally; with vocal duties being handled by Jocke Svensson. After releasing two demos they signed a deal and unleashed their debut album ‘Tales From The Morgue‘, in 2010. They then went on to release three more widely acclaimed albums with fans welcoming the bands glorious Swedish death metal with open arms, a sound that  harked back to the classics. ‘World Inferno‘, now marks the band’s sixth album and fourth for Metal Blade Records.

Since the release of the bands last album, there has been a lineup change with singer Jocke Svensson and drummer Adde Mitroulisleft departing the band in early 2016, both were replaced by singer/bass player Tommy Carlsson and drummer Martin Michaelsson. Fear not however, for all this has done is refocus the band, and with the injection of fresh blood, there is a new sense of purpose and drive which comes when some freshness is added to the rotting corpse that is Entrails. I guess death metal is the only genre where you could compare something to a rotten corpse and it is actually meant as a compliment. The album was once again recorded at Lundqvist‘s Bloodshed Studio, once again with Dan Swanö handling the mixing and mastering for the album, the old saying; “if it’s not broke then why fix it?”, is an approach that once again paid off because there is no faulting the sound of the music on show here.

The album starts with the tile track ‘World Inferno’, which opens with somber and almost reflective keyboards before the mood is broken by the hellish screams of lost skeletal souls screaming in anguish, just like the skeletons that grace the album artwork. Before long the album kicks in with the ungodly sound of buzz-saw guitars which are so god damn infectious that you can not help but be taken in from the get go. Really, even though the band take a lot from the sound of Entombed and even Dismember, it is done with sheer class and respect for the genre that you can not avoid getting worked up into a frenzy. On top of the guitars the song opens with a solo, which extreme metal bands have been executing to great effect ever since Slayer gave us ‘Captor of Sin’, all those years ago. Next up is first single ‘Condemned to the Grave’, which injects some groove into the mix and is so contagious that not for the life of me can I stop myself from tapping my foot and starting to headbang and before long my fist is in the air – this could get dangerous. Next up is the second single ‘Serial Murder(Death Squad), which really is just a variation on the previous single with more speed in certain areas and subtle touches of melody in others. Before the dust even settles, the band strike with yet another pre-release single in the shape of ‘The Soul Collector’, and it becomes clear that the band construct such well-refined songs that really any song could be released as a stand alone track, Each song is crafted so it can stand on its own merits. The band know where they came from, they know the style and more importantly they know their strengths and weaknesses and use them to their advantage. There will always be those who denounce the band and write them off as Entombed clones but to be honest, you would be missing out on some top-notch death metal, and I for one could not live with that.

So with all the pieces in place; what about the songs? The band once again stick to the formula without venturing into new territories, but this is death metal, and if you came here you know by now what to expect. You can leave originality and innovation at the door and put quality songwriting on the table. ‘World Inferno’ is an album packed full of riff infested songs that reek from the stench of filth from the death metal plague that swept across the globe in the early 90’s, harking back to the classic days when Swedish death metal reigned supreme. The album’s strength is that even though you feel like you have been here before, the songs work their way into your psyche and remind you of all those classic albums and what got you into death metal in the first place.