GRAVE UPHEAVAL – UNTITLED 2LP (Nuclear War Now!)

Grave Upheaval play just the kind of Death Metal I love – primitive, cavernous, lo-fi, frightening – like a slower Portal or a spaced-out Antediluvian. However, it’s a real shame that the label saw fit to leave Side D of the standard edition of this album blank while rewarding those who purchased the Die Hard version with a ‘bonus track’. I find this practice mystifying.

I forked out €23 for this – plus an additional €9 for postage. A total investment of €32, yet I end up with an inferior product to those who are prepared to spend even more. No matter what way you look at it, punishing those who merely buy the regular edition of an album by giving them less music is wrong on every level. Ultimately, what I have is an inferior product, which cost me a lot of money.

I know how Die Hard releases work (and happen to think they are dumb anyway). But, whatever about bumping them up with flags, wooden boxes and stickers and t-shirts and booklets etc., the day that there is more actual music on the more-expensive version is a sad day indeed. For €32, I have a record-and-a-half of the double LP.

The music itself is exceptional but, alas, I can’t get past the grossly unfair ‘bonus track’ issue. What exactly does standard mean anyway – yardstick, average or just a kick in the teeth?

Evilometer:€£$/666