Carcass was first formed in 1985 by guitarist Bill Steer and drummer Ken Owen under the name Disattack. Joined by vocalist Sanjiv and bassist Jeff Walker, they changed the name of the band to Carcass; and in 1987, they recorded a demo called “Flesh Ripping Sonic Torment.” Shortly after, Sanjiv left the group so the remaining three members split vocal responsibilities for their album “Reek of Putrification,” which caught the attention of Radio 1 DJ, John Peel.
“Symphonies of Sickness,” their second album, was released in 1989 and featured more death metal than the previous album. While on tour for the album they had guitarist Michael Amott join them, eventually taking a permanent position in the band and helping with the composition of their next album, “Necrotism- Descanting The Insalubrious.” The band went through a bit of a sound change for their fourth album entitled “Heartwork” which was released in 1993. After its release they signed with Columbia Records. Starting in 1994 the band started to record their new album, “Swansong,” however, a controversy occurred between the label and the band causing the album to not be released until 1996. But the release of “Swansong” didn’t come before the band switched over to Earache Records and broke up for a brief time, but despite the success of “Swansong” the band could not continue together.
In September 2007 Carcass reformed with Amott, Steer, Walker and Daniel Erlandsson (who replaced Ken Owen). Their first show back in the public was the German heavy metal festival, “Wacken Open Air.” Their appearance was followed by a reunion tour around the world as well as appearances made at many festivals. In 2013 the band signed a deal with Nuclear Blast with a slated EP release of “Surgical Remission/Surplus Steel.”
British extreme metal band Carcass is not for everyone, and definitely not for the faint hearted; however, if you can handle their face melting, body crushing, completely mind-blowing music, you should definitely check out their live show, because it doesn’t even come close to the recorded versions of their songs. Despite having a few line-up changes, a short-lived disbandment and even a health scare, the band Liverpool band continues to travel the world to melt their fans faces off.
With Jeff Walker on bass and vocals, Bill Steer on guitar and backing vocals, Ben Ash on guitar, and Daniel Wilding on drums, the band is a completely unstoppable force once they get up on the stage. Their fans are just as wild as a pack of crazed, action filled followers who move and mosh so hard that it is almost dangerous if you don’t know what you are doing. If you take a step to the side and watch, and take in the amazing sounds of the band’s music you will find yourself in a completely different world. The energy is unfathomable, both from the crowd as well as the band, and you can’t help but fall into all of at once.