Having never been exposed to Massacre of the Umbilical Cord, I find myself wondering exactly what to expect from half of this split album. Control, on the other hand, I am familiar with what they do and am excited by their contribution to this record. Control is one of a slew of newer bands that are utilizing sounds brought to light during the mid to late nineties by such bands as Deadguy and Coalesce (other bands had done these sounds prior to both of these but for many this was their introduction). That is not to pigeonhole Control in any way, just to give a reference a point. Regardless of any prior exposure, or lack thereof, to the bands featured on this split, I find myself genuinely excited to hear what both groups have to offer with this album.
Massacre of the Umbilical Cord offer nine tracks of blazing speed and grinding intensity that just run listeners over with the sheer momentum that just rolls from song to song. The band could not be labeled as a traditional grind outfit, but Massacre of the Umbilical Cord does utilize the major aspects of that genre to concoct a sound that also includes some technical guitar work and some hardcore style breakdowns with a death grunt style of vocals juxtaposed with a throatier screaming kind of vocal. "Nobody Likes a Cutter" shows the group's propensity for tossing in tiny (barely noticeable) flourishes of thrash as well. "It Feeds Itself" is the longest recording included with Massacre of the Umbilical Cord's part of the split, topping off at just about two and a quarter minutes; it also happens to be the band's most stylistically and dynamically varied piece. In what may perhaps be one of the funniest songs that I have heard in a while, "The Never Ending Breakdown Part 2" has little to offer musically; but the track does bring a much needed sense of humor (with off hand comments regarding a certain social networking website) to Massacre of the Umbilical Cord's portion of the split album.
The five songs that represent Control for their part of this split record are much more noisy and have a stronger grasp of dynamic use in their construction. From the use of discordant drones mixed in with odd time signatures in "Dish Fight" to the great tempo changes in "Evangelitis," Control show a great deal of prowess with this type of sound. My one wish for this recording would be that of a dirtier sound; that would make the sound of the recording a bit more "dangerous" or even pressing. "Claws Down Nails Up" gives the listener an inkling that the band seem to have the ability to move beyond that of being a mere sum of their immediately apparent influences. Overall, Control comes through on the promise that I had previously been exposed, and I am glad that there is a good amount of material here from them.
Massacre of the Umbilical Cord and Control both offer up a crushing split release via Magic Bullet, which may be an asset as well as a detriment to the release. At times, the record feels sluggish and has proven to be difficult to listen to the entire album in one sitting. The split is set up rather unconventionally as Massacre of the Umbilical Cord's songs sort of bookend the offerings made by Control and this might have some small bit to do with the overall pacing of the album. The artwork for the record is rather witty by being comprised of images of famous dead rock stars covered in blood with their killing implement (i.e. Elvis with pills, Layne Staley with hypodermic needles); it provides a chuckle or two. Massacre of the Umbilical Cord do provide some entertaining entries to this record, but I do find myself enjoying Control's portion of the split release more; unfortunately, Control is already calling it quits, and this may be the last recorded work that the general populace will get to hear.
