The Bleeding is the fourth studio album by American death metal band Cannibal Corpse, released on April 12, 1994 through Metal Blade Records. It is the last album featuring singer and founding member Chris Barnes and is the first album featuring guitarist Rob Barrett. According to SoundScan numbers, The Bleeding is the fifth top-selling death metal LP in the United States, amassing over 98,300 copies sold. The Bleeding is also Cannibal Corpse's most successful album to date.[1][2]
| The Bleeding | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | April 12, 1994 | |||
| Recorded | November 12 – December 3, 1993 | |||
| Studio | Morrisound Recording, Tampa, FL | |||
| Genre | Death metal | |||
| Length | 36:54 | |||
| Label | Metal Blade | |||
| Producer | Scott Burns | |||
| Cannibal Corpse chronology | ||||
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| Censored cover | ||||
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| Remastered cover | ||||
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| Other Remastered cover | ||||
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| Singles from The Bleeding | ||||
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A video was made for the song "Staring Through the Eyes of the Dead". A re-mastered version of The Bleeding is available and features new cover art, a bonus track ("The Exorcist", a Possessed cover) and the music video of "Staring Through the Eyes of the Dead". This music video would later be featured in Beavis and Butt-Head.
Musical style edit
This album signified a few changes for Cannibal Corpse, primarily the change in speed. The reason for this was because Barnes had decided he wanted to pursue a different musical angle.[citation needed] For this album, he chose a more "groove" style similar to what he was doing in Six Feet Under over Cannibal Corpse's previous material which focused more on blast beats and speed. Vocally on The Bleeding, Barnes had also decided to go for a more "decipherable" approach instead of his previously inhuman grunting he had executed on previous Cannibal Corpse albums.[3]
The album is also notable for a much more technical approach for the guitar work, and a more prominent bass.
Cover art edit
The original 1994 cover art, a departure for a Cannibal Corpse album, appeared to depict a tapestry of raw flesh and muscle, rather than it featuring graphic violence. The uncensored cover art for the 2006 reissue, however, reveals the original artwork was merely a part of a greater whole. In the reissue artwork, a man is standing in an intimate gathering of zombies, with an expression of ecstasy on his face. The man has been stripped of skin from the chest down. The corpses are entwined with a veiny, blueish growth that is reminiscent of a root system. The exposed muscle and bone of the man's lower body exhibits a fresh growth of this ropey-material, suggesting he is becoming one of them. The original 1994 cover art was simply a close-up of the skinless ribcage and musculature of that man's midsection.
Reception edit
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 6/10[4] |
| Sputnikmusic |  [5] |
"Pushed the envelope in every imaginable way, from cover art to song titles to the music itself. [...] Scott Burns gives the album a wonderful sheen that instantly sets Cannibal Corpse apart from most of the other death metal bands out there [...] The riffs absolutely grind, just as the rhythms pulverize and the vocals thunder. [...] one of the standout death metal albums of the mid-'90s".[1]
Track listing edit
All lyrics are written by Chris Barnes
| No. | Title | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Staring Through the Eyes of the Dead" | 3:30 | |
| 2. | "Fucked with a Knife" | Webster | 2:15 |
| 3. | "Stripped, Raped and Strangled" |
| 3:27 |
| 4. | "Pulverized" |
| 3:35 |
| 5. | "Return to Flesh" |
| 4:21 |
| 6. | "The Pick-Axe Murders" | Webster | 3:03 |
| 7. | "She Was Asking for It" |
| 4:33 |
| 8. | "The Bleeding" | Owen | 4:20 |
| 9. | "Force Fed Broken Glass" |
| 5:02 |
| 10. | "An Experiment in Homicide" |
| 2:36 |
| Total length: | 36:54 | ||
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11. | "The Exorcist" (Possessed cover) | Mike Torrao | Torrao | 4:36 |
Credits edit
Writing, performance and production credits are adapted from the album liner notes.[6]
Personnel edit
Cannibal Corpse edit
- Chris Barnes – vocals
- Rob Barrett – lead guitar
- Jack Owen – rhythm guitar
- Alex Webster – bass
- Paul Mazurkiewicz – drums
Production edit
Artwork and design edit
- Vincent Locke – cover art
- Brian Ames – design
- Frank White – photography
- Joe Giron – photography
Studios edit
- Morrisound Recording, Tampa, FL, USA – recording, mixing
- Fullersound – mastering
References edit
- ^ a b c Birchmeier, Jason. The Bleeding - Cannibal Corpse at AllMusic
- ^ "It's Official: Cannibal Corpse Are the Top-Selling Death Metal Band of the SoundScan Era". Blabbermouth.net. November 17, 2003. Archived from the original on December 2, 2003. Retrieved June 1, 2008.
- ^ Watson, Tyler (February 18, 2007). "Biography of Chris Barnes". Tomb of the Mutilated.net. Archived from the original on May 9, 2008. Retrieved August 2, 2012.
- ^ Popoff, Martin (2007). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 3: The Nineties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 71. ISBN 978-1-894959-62-9.
- ^ "Cannibal Corpse - the Bleeding (Album review 2) | Sputnikmusic".
- ^ The Bleeding (liner notes). Cannibal Corpse. Metal Blade Records. 1994.
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