Our first encounter with Foul Body Autopsy was with a pre-Bloodstock article when we realised that our questions didn’t work too well when the band consisted of precisely one person, so hasty editing was required!
What’s most impressive about Tom Reynolds is that he rattles off recordings that definitely do not sound any less impressive for only featuring a single recording artist. Guitars, bass, vocals and drums (programming) are all down to him, but the sound is full and the riffs fantastic. You’d never guess this is a solo project.
This Machine Kills Zombies is a homage to the classic walking dead flicks (not the turgid modern TV soap) with Tom’s typical edge of modern commentary woven throughout. Fast thrash guitar and drums clash with harsh death vocals and there’s barely a resting moment. There’s no real formula to the tracks either, with running lengths varying from 1:30 to 7:15 so they last exactly as long as they need to. Gone are the days of everything having to be roughly three to four minutes long!
Amongst the fast-paced neck-breaking are a couple of interesting sections. First is the rather melodic intro to “Chaos Reigns”. Completely unlike anything else on the album (indeed anything else I’ve heard from FBA), it shows another string to Tom’s bow and I’d actually welcome hearing something a bit more like it from him in future. Off the other end of the scale is the quiet piano outro for closing track “Purified Ready To Reclaim”. It’s the sort of peaceful ending you sometimes get with these films as the remaining living stagger around contemplating flesh-eating armageddon and it works… it’s just unusual. I’m assuming it’s Tom’s agile digits on the keys again, too.
On the whole, though, this is a high-tempo face-ripper that’ll keep any death/thrash fan happy. The cover art by Alan O’Neill is top notch as well, coming across as the front of a comic complete with cheesy descriptive dialogue and background jokes (“Arsehole” amplifiers, anyone?).
This Machine Kills Zombies is out on March 24th exclusively from FBA’s Bandcamp page. There are a limited number (twenty!) of pre-order packages which include a t-shirt also, for the bargain price of £15 (or more, if you’re feeling generous). Get in quick! The album will be free to stream.
Foul Body Autopsy: facebook | bandcamp | youtube
