Review
Mammoth Grinder
Underworlds

20 Buck Spin (2013) Jon E.

Mammoth Grinder – Underworlds cover artwork
Mammoth Grinder – Underworlds — 20 Buck Spin, 2013

Mammoth Grinder have made a name for themselves by playing a mix of old school death metal , d-beat and hardcore. While that combination of influences isn't singular to them they have played it with a considerable amount of consistency and rage. This got the attention of more than a few people including 20 Buck Spin.

While not their first time around the block the band manages to play with the exuberance of a group of 15 year olds discovering South Of Heaven for the first time. Meanwhile, their musicianship comes of sounding like if Morbid angel play Domination front to back at top speed.

The riffs are all there, and the drums pound like a beast coming up from hell. The production helps to magnify these aspects as the band favors a more dirty old school sounding approach giving the drums a fair amount of cavernous feeling to them as the guitars buzz and the bass is turned up just enough to bully the listener.

All these thing would make a great bit of worship if Mammoth Grinder wasn't so adept at taking these traits and using them how they see fit. The band does a great job of doing things their way while saluting back to the past this makes for a great listen overall.

7.9 / 10Jon E. • October 27, 2014

Mammoth Grinder – Underworlds cover artwork
Mammoth Grinder – Underworlds — 20 Buck Spin, 2013

Related features

Mammoth Grinder

One Question Interviews • December 3, 2013

Related news

Mammoth Grinder updates

Posted in Tours on December 1, 2014

Power Trip summer dates

Posted in Tours on May 27, 2014

Recently-posted album reviews

Real Numbers

Was It Always This Way
Slumberland Records (2026)

I feel like this may be the first 12", 10-song release in my collection from Real Numbers, a dreampop meets jangle-indie rock band from Minneapolis. I'm not going to fact check my statement, because I mean it as a metaphor. Real Numbers play exactly what you'd expect based on my short description so far, but there's always something just a … Read more

Alien Nosejob

How A Mosquito Operates
Anti Fade, Iron Lung (2026)

The one-man band of Alien Nosejob continues to crank out short, angry hardcore in quick bursts. I've lost count of how many records Jake Robertson has now released under the name. I'll just say that while the first couple took some direction changes, the project seems to have found its footing in 1980s-influenced hardcore. With 17 songs in 24 minutes, … Read more

Cancer Bats

Give Me Dirt
Marshall Amplification PLC, New Damage records (2026)

ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS – “Bright Eyes of Gold”, “Give Me Dirt”, “Long Tooth”, “Fools Like You” Almost exactly two years ago, on 8th August 2024, Cancer Bats played Conne Island in Leipzig – a choice they would live to regret. Unbeknownst to them at the time, the centre had slowly become renowned for its radical politics and, more recently, the ban … Read more