6 Feet Under is a death metal band from Tampa, Florida consisting of bassist Jeff Hughell, drummer Marco Pitruzzella, lead guitarist Ray Suhy, secondary guitarist Jack Owen & finally frontman Chris Barnes. The latter of whom co-founded Cannibal Corpse, dropping some of the greatest material throughout one of metal music’s extreme subgenres including Tomb of the Mutilated & The Bleeding under Metal Blade Records. Chris would eventually be fired during the Created to Kill sessions & that’s what lead to Haunted dropping. Maximum Violence however has always been my personal favorite, although the Graveyard Classics series of covers & Nightmares of the Decomposed are some of the most unlistenable death metal you could find. Nevertheless: Their 15th studio LP of original material sparked my curiosity.

The intro really opens up by advising not having any fear when it’s time to “Approach Your Grave” over some standard death metal instrumentation whereas “Destroyed Remains” describes a cold dark night where one would spontaneously combust. “Mr. Blood & Guts” keeps the traditional death metal vibes going depicting himself to be an individual who has no soul or pulse while “Mutilated Corpse in the Woods” wasn’t that exciting of a final single honestly.

“Unmistakable Smell of Death” was a much superior death metal single compared it’s successor & one of the better songs 6 Feet Under has done in recent memory expressing the fulfillment he gets out of terror while “Wrath & Terror Take Command” reaches the halfway point describing the streets & palaces being covered in blood. “Skin Coffins” gets the other leg going talking about hearts decaying in our graves while “Mind Hell” details our deceased souls being buried long ago.

Winding down Next to Die’s final moments, “Naked & Dismembered” makes a weird reference to “Hammer Smashed Face” during the chorus despite the fact Chris had a hand in making that one of death metal’s greatest singles period. “Grasped from Beyond” on the other hand discusses a madness overtaking our souls & after the title track explains a darkness waiting forevermore, “Ill Wishes” ends with the quintet offering a glimpse of a life fading forever.

You’re not gonna get anything embarrassingly bad as Nightmares of the Decomposed but even if I do consider Next to Die to be an improvement above 6 Feet Under’s previous full-length Killing for Revenge & even Torment, it’s a subpar meat & potatoes death metal album that’s neither memorable or pushes this style forward because of the songwriting or instrumentally playing it safe. And that’s been a reoccurring theme with Chris Barnes & company for over 2 decades respectfully.

Score: 2/5

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