Rating: 8.7

Country: USA

Release Date: 2004

Record Label: Necroharmonic

Track list:
1. Speed Freak
2. Leech Boy
3. Swimming in Blood
4. For Those I Hate
5. Suicide Pact
6. Beneath the Skin
7. 29th Lobotomy
8. Wriggling Torsos
9. Lunatic Whore
10. Open Wound
11. Scattered Carnage
12. Die Pig Die
13. To Die Again
14. Throbbing Black Werebeast
15. Brain Destroyer
16. Doomsday Inside my Head
17. Horny Hag
18. Leave the Skin
19. Flesh Candy
20. Fucking Hell
21. Necroslut
22. Maldoror
23. Sink, Drown, Die
24. Fuckface
25. Thirst for Blood, Hunger for Flesh

Total playing time: 58:06

Abscess - Thirst For Blood, Hunger For Flesh

It's sometimes hard to review bands you've already liked for many, many years. Especially one the caliber of Abscess. No history will be given in this review, while I would love to do a total nerd-out and give you the storied history, let's just say Abscess was the (il?)logical progression of Autopsy and I won't argue with ANYTHING Christ Reifert gives me. Yes I just typed Christ Reifert.

What we have here is a collection of pretty much every Abscess song never pressed onto digital form in “one lump song” we have pre-debut demo material, various b-sides, some live gems, various seven inch sessions and it's all fucking AWESOME. Some songs have a raw, fuzzed (drugged) out sound that scream “the alcohol costs were by far more expensive than the mixing process”, others were obviously from the Tormented and Through the Cracks of Death recording sessions and sound remotely professional.

My ONE complaint is at times I wished the tracks were all in order instead of randomly tossed together in a “whatever” order. However it DOES keep you on your toes and constantly “surprised” due to the musical and sonic differences from one track to the next and I wager to bet that was the intent. And with that ONE complaint being out of the way I'll continue to kiss ass.

The packaging is top notch and includes not only hand written lyrics (classic Reifert calligraphy style!) but has liner notes from every member of the band. Most of which are hilarious. Drugs and alcohol seem to be Abscess's solids AND liquids, no wonder after all these years Chris STILL isn't a fat ass but damn near a walking skeleton-spending all your money on weed and booze doesn't leave much room for nutritious meals like… ramen or spaghetti-o's.
Back to the music…

Some of the stuff is old Abscess style “death punk”, obscenely raw, hilariously lyrically, savage and fucking gruesome. Other stuff is the more “professional/mature” side that has such a genuine eerie atmosphere, that these composers can ONLY be musical geniuses. It's utterly nightmarish at times.

The “album” is nearly an hour but moves along smoothly and never seems to lag, drag or just bore you.
And as I am writing this the “bass solo” on "Leave the Skin" hits and MAN, that is FUCKED UP SHIT!
So I must listen again… I wonder what the hell these guys would write I they ever went sober…
So yah, anyway that was my review. Just fucking get this, I have NO CLUE why so many tight assed fucks won't give Abscess a chance and only listen to Autopsy. So this may be no Mental Funeral or Severed Survival, that was NEVER Abscess's intentions. Abscess is Abscess, and you should enjoy them just for that!

Recommended to longtime fans of Abscess, as well as newbies since it gives you an idea of every time period the band went through. Just watch out for the Horny Hag, I hear she's real!

PS: the cover art has one noticeable characteristic that I guess would explain Abscess perfectly. An undead creature shooting heroin (or PCP?) into a brain made entirely of maggots… oh yah, that's Abscess alright!
“Play loud and Fucking Fry!”

Detailed Tracklist:
"Raw, Sick and Brutal Noize" demo - Track #21
"Filthy Fucking Freaks" live demo - Tracks #7, #12, & #17
"Throbbing Black Werebeast" 7" ep - Tracks #1, #4, #8, #14, #18, #20, & #24
"Open Wound" demo - Tracks #2, #10, #13, & #19
"Deranged" split 10" - Tracks #3, #9, & #15
"Unreleased Studio 2000 Sessions" - Tracks #11, & #23
"Unreleased Studio 2002 Sessions" - Tracks #6, #16, #22, & #25
"Suicide Pact Unreleased" - Track #5

March 7th, 2005