Hailing from Chesterfield, England, Forgotten Remains play it straight with a no frills approach to their take on extreme metal. Morbid Reality, their fourth EP in five years, revisits the two tracks from 2015’s Tormented Aggression and combines them with three newer cuts.
I sometimes find describing a group as death/thrash a bit odd given the close links the two genres have with each other, although I guess it’s suitable for an act that dabbles in both but never truly commits to either side. Forgotten Remains falls into this category, drawing from both styles when crafting their songs. Their death influence bears a similarity to late 80s/early 90s Floridian greats such as Deicide or Malevolent Creation, whilst the thrash quota takes from the more extreme mid 80s acts (the opening of “Child 44” is Slayer through and through). The songs are very riff driven, with drummer Blaine Wright preferring to take a backseat role. He keeps pace with fairly standard beats (much like Paul Mazurkiewicz does in Cannibal Corpse), throwing in the odd fill or variation to break up any potential monotony. I certainly see no problem with this approach, but some of the riffs aren’t strong or memorable enough to do the lion’s share of the work. They are never substandard, but there’s nothing that’s going to stop you in your tracks or leave your jaw planted on the floor. This leaves vocalist Sam Marshall to pick up much of the slack. He does a decent job with his impassioned mix of growls and screams, but again it’s nothing overly remarkable. A number of well composed solos and lead passages are dotted throughout, courtesy of guitar duo Reece Sanderson and Paul Ryan, but even they’re not enough to elevate the songs to greatness.
There are plenty of good ideas throughout the 19 minute running time, but unfortunately they never come together in one killer song. The band certainly showcases their talent and their ability to compose high quality riffs; it’s just a matter of sustaining it through the course of entire songs. Until then, Forgotten Remains may struggle to break free from the pack in an overcrowded genre.
Rating: 3/5 – shows great promise but just misses the mark.
Highlights: “Child 44”, “Morbid Reality”
Band links: Facebook, Bandcamp
