Cannibal Corpse

Cannibal Corpse is an American Death Metal band formed in 1988. They are one of the few death metal bands known in the mainstream; this is due to their extreme, Gorn-filled lyrics, which have caused immense controversy in several countries. They have had little TV or radio exposure, but remain one of the most popular (if not the most popular) death metal bands. They're certainly among the top-selling, and are considered one of the most influential death metal bands of all time, pushing forward the subgenre of "brutal death metal".

Their current lineup consists of George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher (vocals), Alex Webster (bass), Paul Mazurkiewicz (drums), and guitarists Pat O'Brien and Rob Barrett. They have had quite a few past members, the most notable of these being Chris Barnes, their first vocalist, who is now the frontman of another death metal band, Six Feet Under (not to be confused with the show, of course).

Their albums are renowned for having extremely gory album art. You can see the albums and their respective art below, but bear in mind that they're extremely NSFW.


 * Eaten Back to Life, 1990
 * Butchered at Birth, 1991
 * Tomb of the Mutilated, 1992
 * The Bleeding, 1994 (not gory enough for you? Here is the rereleased album cover!)
 * Vile, 1996
 * Gallery of Suicide, 1998
 * Bloodthirst, 1999
 * Gore Obsessed, 2002
 * The Wretched Spawn, 2004
 * Kill, 2006 (this one is SFW)
 * Evisceration Plague, 2009
 * Torture, 2012

The band provides examples of the following tropes:


 * And I Must Scream - "Staring through the Eyes of the Dead" and "Dead Human Collection"
 * Atop a Mountain of Corpses - "Rotted Body Landslide" features someone being crushed to death in a landslide of bodies while trying to climb a mountain of corpses.
 * Bloodier and Gorier / Darker and Edgier - They managed to do this to Death Metal, of all genres.
 * Careful with That Axe - Several of their songs have sudden and particularly bloodcurdling screams, including "Blood Drenched Execution" and "Devoured by Vermin". "Blunt Force Castration" opens very suddenly and brutally with a massive growl, and could be considered a partial example of this.
 * Contemptible Cover - All of them.
 * Cover Version - They've covered "The Exorcist" and "Confessions" by Possessed, "Zero the Hero" by Black Sabbath, "Sacrifice" by Sacrifice, "Demon's Night" by Accept, "No Remorse" by Metallica, "Bethany Home (A Place to Die)" by The Accused, "Endless Pain" by Kreator, and "Behind Bars" by Razor.
 * Death From Above - "Scalding Hail"
 * Death Metal - The uber-example, as well as the Trope Codifier.
 * Double Standard - In the heavy metal documentary, "Metal: A Headbanger's Journey", Corpsegrinder mentions how artwork more violent than their lyrics and cover art can be found at the Vatican.
 * Drop the Hammer - Hammer Smashed Face, natch.
 * Epic Riff - "Scattered Remains, Splattered Brains", the doomy opening riffs of "Festering in the Crypt" and "When Death Replaces Life".
 * Exactly What It Says on the Tin - Immediately before they play the song "I Cum Blood" in concerts, Corpsegrinder says "this song is about shooting blood out of your cock."
 * Gorn - In an aversion, Cannibal Corpse are surprisingly lacking in gory lyrics. Their lyrics have never been about gore, and focus on topical subjects such as government corruption and the environment.
 * Gory Deadly Overkill Title of Fatal Death
 * Harsh Vocals
 * Hate Plague - The theme of their 2009 album, Evisceration Plague.
 * Iconic Character - Corpsegrinder, within the death metal scene.
 * In fact, the band themselves, for death metal. If you ask someone to name a death metal band, chances are it's going to be these guys (unless the person you ask is a noob who says "Slipknot" or "Slayer"]].)
 * Though to some hardcore metal fans, saying "Cannibal Corpse" first (even though they ARE death metal) will get you the side-eye and called a noob yourself. Like Cradle of Filth, they are actually a bit of a Scrappy in certain communities for their immense popularity and perceived cartoonishly over-the-top lyrics and album artwork. Yes, fans of extreme metal complain about hamminess and Narm.
 * Incredibly Long Note - Corpsegrinder does a 15-second scream in "They Deserve to Die".
 * I'll Kill You! - The song "I Will Kill You".
 * I'm a Humanitarian - It's in their name, and a lot of their songs feature this.
 * Instrumentals - "Relentless Beating", "From Skin to Liquid" and "Infinite Misery"
 * Intentionally Awkward Title - Just see the Crosses the Line Twice entry.
 * "It's Not Rape If You Enjoyed It" - "She Was Asking For It"
 * Lyrical Dissonance - Deliberately, blatantly, and hilariously invoked by Andrew Hansen of The Chaser, in his lounge arrangement of "Rancid Amputation" (mentioned above).
 * Metal Scream - Several, but the most epic one is the last scream of "Diiiiiiiiiie!!!" in "They Deserve to Die."
 * Mohs Scale of Rock and Metal Hardness - Their earlier stuff is heavier than their later stuff, however both generally stick to 10.
 * Moral Guardians - The band was a favorite target of them in the mid 90's, coming under attack from both the left and the right for their lyrics and cover art. Their albums were outright banned in Australia from 1996 to 2006, their first three albums were also banned in Germany until 2006, and they were prohibited from performing any songs from those albums while touring there.
 * Murder Ballad - Uh... all of their songs? If they could be called ballads.
 * Non-Appearing Title - "Fucked with a Knife". The song is about this, of course, but the phrase "fucked with a knife" isn't actually said/growled/whatever.
 * One of Us - Corpsegrinder plays World of Warcraft and is apparently obsessed with it. He's also a fan of Final Fantasy.
 * The former even has a reference to him, in Gorge the Corpsegrinder, the tank commander. "Confirmed in a recent interview with Cannibal Corpse in Decibel Magazine - "There's a character in the new World of Warcraft named after me," Fisher beams, coincidentally wearing a WOW t-shirt. "I mean, this is my favorite fucking video game and they made a character named after me. Millions of people are going to go to Gorge the CorpseGrinder and get quests from him. It's unbelievable, just unbelievable."" And he is, of course, an orc. Not some pansy alliance elf...
 * Our Zombies Are Different - They tend to stick with Type F. According to Alex Webster, "a cannibal corpse is a zombie that eats other zombies".
 * The Quiet One - Apparently, Alex Webster.
 * Refuge in Audacity - Really, the entire point of the band and their music by their own admission.
 * Serial Killer - "Stripped, Raped, and Strangled" is about this.
 * Signature Song - "Hammer Smashed Face", due to it being played in the aforementioned Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. It's also available in Rock Band 2.
 * Technical Death Metal - Some of their later work falls under this.
 * Title-Only Chorus - "Severed Head Stoning".