I’ve been waiting for this to happen for over forty fuckin’ years now, so you can probably imagine how excited I was when Kam Lee told me at the end of last year that MASSACRE would do re-recordings of all the old MANTAS, DEATH and MASSACRE demo songs. Don’t really know what happened behind the curtain and if this LEFT TO DIE project was already in the making at the same time or not, but when it recently got announced that “Initium Mortis” would be an album of re-recordings of old MANTAS / DEATH demo tracks, it left a slightly bitter taste in my mouth. But I’m definitely not the right guy to judge that situation here. That’s something between those guys, so I would prefer to unbiased focus on the result, which I have played quite a few times already by now. It is totally out of the question of course that the result is polarizing, but I gotta confess that I personally really enjoy the new versions. I think it’s absolutely impossible to recreate that old dungeon-like rehearsal sound with a proper studio recording nowadays anyway and you will also have to remember that those guys were just starting out back then, so their musical skills were just developing. All in all this could chronologically be added to DEATH’s recording discography between their demo period and “Scream Bloody Gore”, as it sounds like the missing link in their evolution and would have been a great debut album! You hear a band that has evolved in every aspect, a band that knows these songs in and out already and instead of Kam Lee’s early maniacal uncontrolled screaming, you’ll get a voice that 100% sounds like Chuck Schuldiner. Just have a look at the tracklist, which is close to perfect: ‘Legion Of Doom’, ‘Archangel’, ‘Power Of Darkness’, ‘Zombie’, ‘Witch Of Hell’, ‘Rise Of Satan’, ‘Summoned To Die’, ‘Mantas’, ‘Slaughterhouse’ and ‘Death By Metal’. All of them are eternal classics for sure, but considering that the playing time of this album is less than thirty minutes, they should have included ‘Reign Of Terror’, ‘Curse Of The Priest’, ‘Rigor Mortis’, ‘Seizure’ and ‘Demon’s Flight’ as well, as those are the only demo songs left now that weren’t properly re-recorded over the years. And since the DEATH debut full-length “Scream Bloody Gore” already featured ‘Evil Dead’, ‘Infernal Death’, ‘Baptized In Blood’, ‘Mutilation’ and ‘Beyond The Unholy Grave’ (‘Corpse Grinder’ was included in MASSACRE’s “From Beyond”), there’s no real necessity to re-record those songs again. But hey, I wouldn’t mind a “Volume 2” with all of these songs combined anyway of course. To get back to “Initium Mortis” – I’m a bit disappointed how ‘Power Of Darkness’ turned out though. The song was incredibly heavy and menacing in the early stages and that unfortunately pretty much got lost in this new version. The guitars would have needed a lot more power here. The overall production on “Initium Mortis” is pretty good though. It fits the songs very well and luckily doesn’t sound digital or modern. The drum sound is a bit dry and could’ve been different and the improvised quite melodic dual guitar leads are a bit out of place in some of the songs, but apart from that, there’s not much to complain about here. Too bad that Kam and Rick couldn’t settle their long-lasting conflict, because hearing Kam’s vocals on a lot of these songs would have been the icing on the cake. To sum it up: despite a little bit of criticism this is a great album for all fans of the early days of MANTAS / DEATH! www.facebook.com/lefttodiedeathmetal, www.facebook.com/relapserecords

Hell yes!!! LEFT TO DIE are preparing for the release of their debut album “Initium Mortis” via Relapse Records to much fanfare of us DEATH and MANTAS fanatics. The band originally formed to pay homage to DEATH by playing the full “Leprosy” album for some shows and that quickly picked up steam to the point where they got signed by Relapse Records. The band consists of original DEATH members Terry Butler (OBITUARY) and Rick Rozz (MASSACRE) joined by Matt Harvey (EXHUMED, GRUESOME) and Gus Rios (GRUESOME) to capture the morbid depths of DEATH’s early demo catalog. Right off the bat you can’t help but see how much life the solid production brings to this early demo material from DEATH / MANTAS. Rick’s guitars are crisp, razor sharp and chugging at 1,000 miles an hour. Terry’s bass is thundering along to Gus’ crushing drums, and Matt’s vocals are killer! ‘Legion Of Doom’ kicks things off with blistering pace and insane momentum. Classic tracks like ‘Death By Metal’, ‘Rise Of Satan’, ‘Mantas’ and ‘Archangel’ are showcased here with the most ferocity. I wish they had included ‘Evil Dead’ but you can’t have it all in life (maybe on their next release???) and that’s ok because what is on this release will keep you headbanging for hours as you hit the repeat button on your player. The stand out song for me has to be ‘Power of Darkness”’, steamrolling like a runaway freight train and not relenting its chaos. I can’t explain just how killer this album is and yes, I know it is not new material per say as its composed of old demo material from the 1980s, but these songs have been reanimated here. Intense, fast paced, brutal and a headbanger’s delight for sure. For those of you that have not heard this material from its earlier incarnation then I recommend you to check it out (the production will be weary but it will give you a baseline to see the impressive work done on this release). These guys will be hitting the road on a European tour soon, if you get a chance check them out live but more importantly pick up this album ASAP. Keeping the DEATH sound alive and bearing the torch that once was sparked by Chuck Schuldiner and company. You will not regret it! For more info: www.facebook.com/lefttodiedeathmetal, www.facebook.com/relapserecords

When I recently heard that LEFT TO DIE was going to re-record some old DEATH / MANTAS tracks that had never made it onto an album (shame on Chuck, since to my ears that’s still the best stuff they ever wrote), with DeLillo on board, I figured this would easily be the album of the year, at the very least… Three weeks later, I see that two tracks are online – and not just your average Metal “songs”, since one is ‘Archangel’, which remains to this day one of the greatest Thrash / Death Metal tracks of all time, given its intensity, which has never been matched. And then it took me no more than a few seconds to bang my head against a wall in despair. The intro was butchered and bore no resemblance to the original, a fact confirmed by the rest of the track. Even the original ATROCITY cover from back then blows their version out of the water every time, without a doubt. I expressed this disgust to Frank, who suggested I review the album, and that’s what brings me here. ‘Rise Of Satan’, ‘Witch Of Hell’, ‘Zombie’, ‘Mantas’ etc. – all these classics are butchered one after another. It makes you wonder if DeLillo actually played these songs 40 years ago – and if Butler and company really grew up listening to them, given how they’ve distorted them like this. There are plenty of vintage recordings to remind us exactly how these songs sounded, without feeling the need to change them the way these clowns have. Nothing works – from the addition of stupid kick drums on the intro to ‘Archangel’ to the out-of-place solos on certain tracks, etc. etc. Everything’s been run through the grinder, butchered, chopped up… There’s nothing to salvage. It’s an album that’s only good for the trash, and it’s a disgrace that they could have produced such a thing by riding on DEATH’s legacy. We just wanted these guys to play the original parts of these songs and come up with a great sound, not come up with their own interpretations. They missed the opportunity when they had all the elements to get it right. Now I just advise people to get the DEATH anthology coming out in a few months, which will feature the real versions of these recordings for the first time. Stay away from that scum. www.facebook.com/lefttodiedeathmetal, www.facebook.com/relapserecords

Out of the endless thousands upon thousands of extreme Metal bands, there exists an elite cadre that requires no introduction. Out of these selected few, perhaps one of the most respected names in extreme Metal is that of DEATH. DEATH eventually grew to a point where they surpassed genres and became a regular name in the Heavy Metal world, one that is respected across whole spectrums of music. The historic run, starting under the name of MANTAS, began in 1983 and ran until 1998, an epic stretch of a decade and a half worth of untouchable Heavy Metal. Countless numbers of demos, rehearsal tapes and live albums pepper the band’s discography, and the full-lengths that DEATH released are almost treated as something truly sacred amongst fans. LEFT TO DIE, comprised of former MANTAS / DEATH members Rick Rozz and Terry Butler alongside Matt Harvey and Gus Rios, have offered forth perhaps one of the most unique listens of 2026 in the form of “Initium Mortis.” This is not a cash-grab. This is breaking down the crypt door and resurrecting the corpse of ancient songs once drafted by MANTAS / DEATH and paying sincere homage to what was some of the most formative material of the early extreme Metal scene. With it comes the modern production, the enhanced audio presentation and a rare light cast upon songs that would have otherwise been overlooked by most. Relapse Records is handling the release, which is set for July 17, 2026, and the album will come in every format – multiple vinyl editions, CD, cassette and digital / streaming. While there have been tribute acts such as DEATH TO ALL and SYMBOLIC, and even sonically adjacent acts such as GRUESOME, LEFT TO DIE most closely resembles the fury and straight-forward assault of the earliest material of MANTAS / DEATH. These tracks, a selection of ten sonic attacks, show the foundation of what led into the meteoric “Scream Blood Gore.” At a total of 27 minutes, this is a compact and lethal battery in its purest form. The album opens with ‘Legion Of Doom’, a track from the first recording session of “Scream Bloody Gore”, that the band was ultimately unsatisfied with. Rerecording the album elsewhere led to the final commercial release of “Scream Bloody Gore” that every listener has heard, however, ‘Legion Of Doom’ did not end up making it to the second recording. Which is a shame, because it’s an interesting song that shows what early DEATH did well; combining tight aggressive rhythmic riffs with complex and intricate technical fluidity intermixed. While many of the tracks on “Initium Mortis” are very straight-forward in both composition and tempo, ‘Legion Of Doom’ combines a variety of paces and a myriad of riff structures, ranging from simple four chord tremolo sequences to complicated leads and soloing. The track would have fit well on either “Scream Bloody Gore” or “Leprosy” and with its renewed animation through modern tones and production, its character is immense and bright. Switching gears is the next track, ‘Archangel’, which appeared on live tapes going as far back as 1984, showing up on the “Infernal Death” demo from 1985, a formidable cut of up-tempo heavy Thrash the builds into what can only be described as… well, Death Metal. This is, essentially, the cave drawing that helped establish the massive civilization of extreme music that exists today. Downbeats are heavily embellished, the drum work is a demonstration of technical chops and the riff work is a grinding monstrosity that never ceases. Towards the middle of the record sits ‘Zombie’, a very cool instrumental track from the MANTAS days that helps keep the blood of the album pumping. Ghostly clean guitars open the track for an extended period before grinding single-note tremolo takes over and ultimately sets the song into a reckless abandon of melodic phrasing and some of the fastest picking technique of this era of music, exceeding most of their contemporaries by a significant margin, a point made more interesting by the fact that Chuck Schuldiner was left-handed but played a right-handed guitar. Another heavy hitter from the MANTAS era that shows up on “Initium Mortis” is ‘Rise Of Satan’, a cut that would have been perfect for “Scream Blood Gore” as it possessed a hint of progressiveness that wouldn’t manifest until later recordings, coupled with blistering lead work over top churning Thrash style riffing. ‘Death By Metal’ closes the record, having been the title track of the 1984 MANTAS demo of the same name. This is perhaps more directly Thrash oriented than many other cuts on the record, and some of the lead work is simply stellar. It is odd to hear such a clean and clear version of the song, considering what appeared on the 1984 demo was something that would make SLAYER blush. It was ahead of its time back then, to an absurd degree. Bringing it back to life, with such crisp note articulation, really brings out the dynamics of the guitar work. The production on “Initium Mortis” is modern and polished. This isn’t the analog blizzard of the early ancient days but a clean, nuclear-hot production that really emphasizes guitars, drums and the lower end of the sonic spectrum. The mix is as solid as iron and really keeps things separate but violently locked in. Overall, “Initium Mortis” can accomplish two things: it gives Death Metal fans something to take seriously in a scene that is grossly oversaturated and it should really encourage listeners to go back and either discover or rediscover the early demo recordings of DEATH and MANTAS. We will never get another “Evil Chuck” and his life ending at the young age of 34 robbed all of us of his immense talent and prospective future works, but “Initium Mortis” now stands as a proper retrospective of the earliest days of two founding bands that helped set the stage for some of the most crushing music in human history. This is and will be a heavily hyped record, and for good reason. Every second of this record is paying respect to the wildfire of youth and the burgeoning talents of a group of musicians that went on to create something greater and larger than themselves. At 27 minutes in length, play this one twice. For more information on Relapse Records, check out www.facebook.com/relapserecords and for more information on LEFT TO DIE, see www.facebook.com/lefttodiedeathmetal.

Captivating project from various ex – DEATH members and American well known artists, involved in this super-band called LEFT TO DIE. In addition to DEATH TO ALL, did we really need a new DEATH tribute band consisting of former musicians that played with Chuck Schuldiner during the golden age? In this case, I can firmly state that yes we did. “Initium Mortis” is a collection of tracks dated back to the 1983 – 1985 MANTAS and early DEATH era, a good amount of legendary material that has always been penalized by extremely poor sound productions. In fact, it must be underlined that these demo tracks were mainly recorded live on a boom box and with inappropriate equipment by a band of teenagers. Thanks to LEFT TO DIE we can finally listen to these songs with a proper and professional sound quality after more than 40 years. Here we have the cream of the crop of the American Death Metal scene with two veterans that played with Chuck, like Terry Butler on bass and Rick Rozz on guitars, joined by Gus Rios on drums (GRUESOME) and Matt Harvey on guitars / vocals (GRUESOME and EXHUMED). There’s obviously a lot of affinity with GRUESOME in terms of sound production, whereas the tracks are identical to the original versions. The choice of re-recording these old demos in a modern way leads as a result to a marked lack of the primitive atmosphere guaranteed by the original DIY sessions. But, after all, this is precisely the ultimate goal of “Initium Mortis”: giving a new identity and dignity to the founding works of MANTAS and DEATH, in order to understand how the sound has evolved during their formative years. The album is released by Relapse Records and consists of ten tracks taken from cult demos such as “Death By Metal”, “Reign Of Terror” and “Infernal Death”. It’s hard to choose the most representative songs in such a mythic tracklist and the best advice is to listen to “Initium Mortis” in its entirety, because here we have the umpteenth testimony of the importance of Chuck Schuldiner for extreme Metal and more. Last but not least, an extra point goes to the iconic artwork painted by Dan Goldsworthy, a terrific piece of art clearly inspired by “Scream Bloody Gore” and a direct homage to Ed Repka’s involvement with DEATH. www.facebook.com/lefttodiedeathmetal, www.facebook.com/relapserecords

When it comes to talking about DEATH, it is always difficult not to link the discussion to the legacy left by Chuck Schuldiner and, above all, to how he himself would have wanted that legacy to unfold. DEATH have been, are and will remain one of the most influential bands on the international Metal scene, and we can appreciate their greatness precisely, because despite playing extreme Metal (which is usually less mainstream), they are recognised as being amongst the greatest. To analyse this release, from the writer’s perspective, we must first of all put things into context: where we are and, above all, who we are with. When we think of DEATH, as I was saying, we immediately and almost exclusively think of Chuck Schuldiner, but DEATH’s greatness – and we often forget this – is also due to the many figures who gravitated around the band. Among them are Rick Rozz (Rozz played guitar on all the MANTAS demo tapes from 1983 to 1984 and on all the DEATH demo tapes from 1984 to 1985, as well as on the album “Leprosy”) and Terry Butler (Butler was credited and pictured on the album “Leprosy”, released in 1988, but all the bass parts were actually played by Chuck Schuldiner. Butler only joined DEATH after the album had been completed, making 1990’s “Spiritual Healing” his only full-length studio album with the band), who in 2022 launched the LEFT TO DIE project alongside Matt Harvey and Gus Rios (founding members of GRUESOME). Incidentally, GRUESOME, whilst producing their own original material, come across as a band that owes everything to DEATH; indeed, on their latest full-length album, “Silent Echos”, they set out to recreate the sound of “Human” in every respect. Initially, the project was conceived with the aim of performing “Leprosy” (originally released in 1988) in its entirety at live shows, alongside tracks from “Scream Bloody Gore” (1987). Before continuing, however, we cannot fail to mention another similar project: DEATH TO ALL. The line-up includes Gene Hoglan (Hoglan played drums on “Individual Thought Patterns” and “Symbolic”), Steve DiGiorgio (DiGiorgio played bass on “Human”, “Individual Thought Patterns” and “Symbolic”), Bobby Koelble (Koeble played guitars on “Symbolic”) and Max Phelps (CYNIC). DEATH TO ALL focus on a different period in DEATH’s career and are currently on tour with a show celebrating the anniversaries of “Spiritual Healing” (35 years) and “Symbolic” (30 years). I felt it was only right to make this brief clarification to put into context the proliferation of tributes (for that is what they are) to DEATH and its mastermind, all of which are, however, performed by accomplished musicians who were originally part of one of the band’s many line-ups. A second point to analyse lies in the necessity – whether artistic or commercial – of this release. After years of gigs reviving “Scream Bloody Gore” and “Leprosy”, the band clearly felt the need to give their work a further boost, particularly in terms of its impact on the audience. From my point of view, in fact, a significant factor lies in the commercial impact of the project. As mentioned, LEFT TO DIE are a tribute band, and with this release they are taking the project to a higher level whilst remaining a tribute band. The album consists exclusively of re-recordings of material from the pre – “Scream Bloody Gore” era. ‘Legion Of Doom’: Originally written for the “Death By Metal” demo (1984). It was even provisionally recorded for “Scream Bloody Gore”, but remained unfinished. ‘Archangel’: Taken from DEATH’s “Infernal Death” demo (1985). ‘Power Of Darkness’: Taken from MANTAS’ “Death By Metal” demo (1984). ‘Zombie’: A staple track on MANTAS / DEATH’s rehearsal tapes and in their early live performances of 1984. ‘Witch Of Hell’: Taken from DEATH’s second historic demo, “Reign Of Terror” (1984). ‘Rise Of Satan’: An absolute rarity dating back to MANTAS’ very earliest rehearsal tapes in the early months of 1984. ‘Summoned To Die’: Taken from DEATH’s demo “Reign Of Terror” (1984). ‘Mantas’: The signature track and title track of the band’s very first incarnation, recorded on the “Death By Metal” demo (1984). ‘Slaughterhouse’: Taken from DEATH’s “Reign Of Terror” demo (1984). ‘Death By Metal’: The title track from MANTAS’ first, seminal demo (1984). Taking all this into account, however, I also believe the album has artistic merit, as the involvement of Rick Rozz – who was present during the recording of the original tracks – lends legitimacy to this project and ensures the tracks are given a sound worthy of them. That said, I think we all loved “Death By Metal” partly because of its raw, muddy recording, which was entirely inadequate for the grandeur of the tracks. “Initium Mortis” at least gives us the chance to hear those tracks with the quality they deserve. For those familiar with DEATH, I’d recommend giving it a listen out of curiosity. For those less familiar with DEATH, I’d recommend the live experience instead. I apologise for focusing mainly on historical and contextual elements, but I consider them essential to understanding the project and the album – moreover, as this is a multi-review, my colleagues will no doubt have already covered the artistic aspects in detail. Click here to find out more: www.facebook.com/lefttodiedeathmetal, www.facebook.com/relapserecords

Let’s face it, Master Chuck is gone for close to three decades… but his legacy has been going on in many ways after he crossed to the other realm. On one hand, yes it is all business… but on the other there is passion and fans trying to keep his legacy to be immortal. DEATH TO ALL is probably the closest you can get to seeing DEATH live, when at times three former members are playing and that vocal / guitar player is almost a clone to Chuck in many senses. Yet, that band only plays and will never records nothing new, they are just keeping the legacy alive. And then it is LEFT TO DIE, named after probably my favourite song ever. And it is much as a tribute as the other band, with at least a few members that were part of earlier line-ups of DEATH. Yes, I know all similar and sometimes both bands playing many of the same songs in their sets. But in difference to the other one, this band decided to record an album, of nothing more than very early songs that were only in demos even going as far as doing MANTAS songs, which still is basically the name Chuck and company used before changing for the one we all know. And, let me tell you, they did a very good job. It is obvious they arranged and updated some songs for a more professional way, and they were wise enough to have a good sound but not too modern to sound out of way. They also kept the very big extreme Thrash Metal influence, which makes this material closer to “Scream Bloody Gore” than anything else the band did later on. Now, besides bass player Terry Butler (who appeared on “Leprosy” and “Spiritual Healing” but rumours says he never recorded) and very early member Rick Rozz (who recorded many early demos and returned for the second album) we have no other than Mr. Matt Harvey who, besides being a main band member for EXHUMED, also formed the DEATH worshipping band GRUESOME, who has done their own versions of early albums (and even the last one getting into the more progressive sound Chuck was doing at the end of his career, a very good band who never denies their main influence) besides playing guitar, he also has a very convincing Chuck alike growls that works perfect as a tribute. The band is rounded with Gus Rios also drummer for GRUESOME. For me the result is a bunch of musicians and fans close to Chuck that wanted to do those early songs justice and not only keeping them in lo quality sounding rehearsals (although nothing wrong with that, but for me old skull it is a great idea if done correctly and they did!). The artwork also makes many references to the old days and to be honest, after more than a few listenings I cannot think anything else than this was a good thing. Yes, it can also be considered something to make money (something Chuck always struggled in his career) and yes there are too many bands making reference to his legacy, but again, if your legacy is so strong, I really don’t care. Having the opportunity to witness DEATH a couple of times live and even having the chance to interview Chuck face to face for close to an hour, he seemed to me like just a guy who was a fan of music and wanted to share his creations with similar minded guys. And although I like all the eras of his music career, it is more than obvious that I will always held their earlier material in higher regards. There is always the danger of creating something like a tribute and failing, but in this case, it’s probably some of the best things ever done for that matter. Let the Metal flow! www.facebook.com/lefttodiedeathmetal, www.facebook.com/relapserecords

It’s not the first time that experienced musicians have blatantly exhumed the charnel remains of ancient deathcantations buried ages ago in eldritch vaults and crypts. Some may suffer an eroded dusk of vision and inspiration. Some may cherish an unhinged melancholy from those glorious days of yore when Death Metal boldly raised its putrid skull from a Heavy Metal slumber screaming for new blood. With “Initium Mortis” LEFT TO DIE gently invites us back to 1984; voraciously resurrecting a rebellious creed dominating the infamous tapetrading years. If you were there, indulging the numerous MANTAS / DEATH demos, rehearsals and live tapes the album may leave you slightly disappointed. To us hardly discussed elements such as tape hiss, sound quality, production and even musical skills were always inferior to challenges in speed, brutality, heaviness and evil Metal mayhem. Over the years those minor flaws have even grown to essential details emphasizing the primordial magic of the early Death Metal cult. Still “Initium Mortis” delivers the mouldering style and atmosphere to become the forbidden predecessor to “Scream Bloody Gore” we always begged for, even cursed / blessed by the decent production. The alchemy Rick Rozz and Matt Harvey evoke from their strings is raw, coarse, grainy and strangely organic. Matt’s gargling throat and death rattles spit out the godless lyrics in the most gruesome traditions the style demands. Exactly the malignant squirming cauldron to grant ‘Legion Of Doom’, ‘Power Of Darkness’, ‘Witch Of Hell’, ‘Slaughterhouse’ and ‘Death By Metal’ the energy denied before. The older tracks ‘Rise Of Satan’, ‘Mantas’ and ‘Zombie’ reveal rusty Heavy Metal riffs and structures I barely noticed before; obviously deeply rooted in early IRON MAIDEN ethics as Chuck would agree. Personally, I still need some time to accept the drum sound; it’s too clinical, too mechanical and too digital. I wish LEFT TO DIE would have summoned Chris Reifert to pervert, befoul and mutilate the rhythms. “Initium Mortis” is a short but intense and gratifying release I will definitely add to my vinyl shrines before the next crescent moon haunts the heavens! More info at: www.facebook.com/lefttodiedeathmetal, www.facebook.com/relapserecords