6) “Words”
[youtube]https://youtu.be/3J7XRtBvM-w[/youtube]
For the American release of Uprising, the band included three extra tracks tacked onto the end of the original sequence. “Words” is my favorite of the three. There’s some cool punk/d-beat action on the track. It actually sounds a bit like “Come Clean.” I don’t know if these were written specifically for the American re-release or if they were culled from the original sessions, but if the latter were true, “Words” could’ve easily stood on its own to make the final cut. (go to 50:20 in the video to hear “Words”).
7) “Addiction King”
[youtube]https://youtu.be/tbebejWhsJU[/youtube]
Your homeboys probably told you to steer clear of Same Difference, and they were right. Sometimes growth and experimentation leads to amazing new frontiers for bands that no one would’ve ever thought could be visionaries. And sometimes these things are bad, and bands should feel bad for doing them. Same Difference represents Entombed’s ill-advised flirtation with grunge and 90’s radio rock, and while I’ve done my best to give it its fair shake over the years, I can say without question that on the whole, it’s better left alone. The one exception is opener “Addiction King,” which rocks for Entombed the way “Stain of Mind” rocks for Slayer, or “Rock & Roll Doctor” rocks for Black Sabbath; this is Entombed through a bizarre lens of influences whose incorporation ultimately didn’t pan out, but the songwriting on this particular track is catchy enough that, when combined with whatever latent muscle of To Ride… was still coursing through the band at this point, it’s worth the spin just to see if you can get your head to nod. For what it’s worth, “Addiction King” is in every Entombed compilation I make. So… not worth much. Moving on.
8) “They”
[youtube]https://youtu.be/2iDmwajgtc8[/youtube]
To Ride, Shoot Straight and Speak The Truth is probably the biggest stylistic leap they had between albums. Yeah, things changed a lot between Clandestine and Wolverine Blues, but Wolverine Blues is still more or less a death metal record, at least by Entombed’s standards. To Ride is a different animal entirely. So many of the songs on this album exude a swagger and confidence that seems, if all you’ve heard is their records prior to this one, to come out of nowhere. On this album, it’s really evident these dudes are having fun; this is their version of rock & roll. “Wreckage” and “Like This With The Devil” get a ton of love, but “They” seems to get overlooked. I chose it because it embodies the swing of the album’s grooviest moments without sacrificing actual structure for novelty (like “Boats” or “Uffe’s Horror Show”).
9) “Serpent Speech”
[youtube]https://youtu.be/CJnnYeYCvmA[/youtube]
I haven’t included any songs from Wolverine Blues here because there are no slept-on tracks on that record, man. If you’re fan of Entombed, odds are you know that album backwards and forward… whether it’s out of love or hate is a different story. I love Wolverine Blues. “Serpent Speech” is one of the extra tracks from the Hollowman EP they released prior to the full-length. It’s got just as much attack and attitude as the LP tracks, but it’s a little closer to the Clandestine formula than most of what made Wolverine Blues’s final sequencing. Entombed AD have actually had this one in their live set recently. That’d be a hell of a thing to witness.
10) “Shreds of Flesh”
[youtube]https://youtu.be/JAsk2rCdE6o[/youtube]
Full-on, vintage Entombed. “Shreds of Flesh” is all blastbeats, buzzing guitars and screams. This version was featured as the b-side of the Stranger Aeons 12-inch, and was also included on the self-titled compilation released by Earache as a contractual obligation after the band had moved on (some other great stuff on there, too, including the band’s KILLER cover of “Night of The Vampire”). If you’re looking for Entombed at the peak of the style on which they originally built their reputation, you’d be hard pressed to find a finer specimen.
Like I said before, man, there are so many bands, whether they know it or not, who’ve taken a page from Entombed’s book. Odds are if your band was produced by Kurt Ballou at GodCity any time in the last 10 years, your guitar tone’s gonna sound quite a bit like Uprising… and that’s totally okay. Death metal is a fickle style, man. There are influences that go well with it and are conducive to a rewarding listening experience, and there are total disasters that punish us as reminders that sometimes the purest way is the best way (Morbid Angel, RIP). In the case of Entombed, these dudes showed that there’s room in extreme music for the dirtiest attributes that make punk and hard rock intriguing, gratifying and dangerous. With the future of Entombed’s legacy in question, as tends to be the case when bands split into rival factions, there’s no way of knowing if anything worthwhile will be added to their catalog in the future. But I’m hopeful. Even if this is it, however, there’s no doubt that the legacy they’ve built so far will continue to stand on its own, as well as influence musicians for years to come.
