Rotting Christ

Khronos (Century Media)
by Scott Hefflon

Enough people kiss the feet of Rotting Christ, so I guess no one’ll really care if I admit to thinking them pretty goddamn mediocre. Originally simple, raw and shitty-sounding like classic ’80s greats Bathory, Celtic Frost, Possessed, and Venom, then becoming ever-more complex before falling for that Goth metal thing a few years ago with fellow overrated losers Moonspell, Rotting Christ are finally realizing that with a name like they’ve got, they might as well play flesh-ripping metal and keep what little dignity there is in starving to death. So while there’s plenty of decent melodic dark metal ooze, chunks of mid-tempo guitar crunch and snarl, and just a touch of hyperspeed blur to skip around the sacrificial bonfire, I’ll take Dark Tranquillity or Cradle of Filth over these guys without hesitation. While perhaps it’s unfair to compare Rotting Christ to those greats, many think them equals and I vehemently disagree.
(1453-A 14th St. #324 Santa Monica, CA 90404)