Degrading – 67%
robotniq, June 3rd, 2021
“Shitfun” doesn’t get much love. I recall the indifference of the metal press when this record came out. This kind of snuff-driven old school death metal was out of fashion back then, and was always going to be a minority interest. Autopsy gave some interviews but they didn’t seem to care about the record. This might be because both Chris Reifert and Danny Coralles were focusing on Abscess. I was a teenager at the time and a voracious death metal fiend, but I passed on this record every time I saw it for sale. There was nothing appealing about it; the puerile title, the cover photo featuring someone with a turd in their mouth. This is not a ‘likeable’ record. It is the sort of record that non-metal fans (and parents) can use to poke fun at the genre and discredit it.
But that would be missing the point, wouldn’t it? Death metal was never meant to be pleasant. It was meant to sound horrible. “Shitfun” is one of those records that wallows in its unsavoury transgressions. To listen to this album is to feel unclean. I view this as the musical and aesthetic culmination of Autopsy’s career. The record combines elements from all three of the band’s previous albums, and tenderises them. This means we get the sick, bass-heaviness of “Severed Survival”, the dark and doomy melodies of “Mental Funeral”, and the punkish speed of “Acts of the Unspeakable”. This is an effective combination. The album is impressive on a surface level. The production is raw, ugly, and full-bodied. This was the ideal production for a death metal band in the barren mid-90s. “Shitfun” is the best sounding Autopsy album, and its primeval power is undeniable.
When “Shitfun” hits, it hits hard. The album is best during its most uncomfortable, transgressive moments. The clearest example is the grisly necrophilliac soliloquy in the middle of “I Sodomize Your Corpse”. This is the most distinctive and memorable part of the album. It is made all the more effective because Reifert’s vocals are decipherable. This means you can hear every word he is saying. This makes it more shocking than any of the umpteen brutal death metal bands that hide their lyrical content behind incomprehensible grunting. Let’s just say that this record earns the ‘Parental Advisory: Explicit Lyrics’ sticker on the front cover. For all the trash and schlock, there is a low-brow artiness to this record. Something about the monstrous slow chords and vile tirades reminds me of early Swans material (like “Cop”).
The problem I have with “Shitfun” is that I can’t find much ‘fun’ in it. This record lasts for almost an hour; quantity over quality. Autopsy were riding their renowned sewer aesthetic here, not flexing their (equally renowned) song-writing prowess. There is an over-reliance on cheap vocal hooks to distinguish the songs. There are too many songs with those Master-influenced tempos (e.g. “The Birthing”). These sound cool, but are more of an old school tribute than anything else. Overall, “Shitfun” is an unappealing listen that shuffles between disquieting transgression and over-worn death metal tropes. Better records exist that cover every base. These include the brutish violence of “Cop”, the punk beats of Master’s near-album from 1985, or the cartoonish grindcore excess of Repulsion. “Shitfun” pushes old school death metal unsavouriness to the extreme, but it is difficult to sit through.
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