Grand Cadaver’s "The Rot Beneath" – Four Tracks of Pure Swedish Death Metal Glory

“…when seasoned pros step into the death metal arena, they still know how to swing the axe…”

There’s something about old-school Swedish death metal that just hits. Maybe it’s the HM-2 guitar tone. Maybe it’s the way the bass sounds like it’s been fed nothing but protein shakes and swamp water. Or maybe it’s the fact that the people making it are absolute lifers in the scene — in the case of Grand Cadaver, all of the above.

Formed during the pandemic (one of those “pandemic baby” bands that skipped crawling and went straight to chainsaw riffs), Grand Cadaver have already dropped two full-lengths, proving they’re not here to mess around. On The Rot Beneath, their latest EP, they condense that experience into four songs of unfiltered, professionally crafted OSDM that knows exactly how long to stay before the cops show up.

The door doesn’t just get knocked on with “Blood Red Banner” — it gets kicked off the hinges. Mikael Stanne’s vocals are a guttural sermon from the depths, riding alongside solid-as-bedrock guitar riffing and drumming that punches with both precision and spite. The bass? Absolute chonk. You could spread that tone on toast. It’s the musical equivalent of “Thicc Thighs Save Lives.” Swedish death metal loves sneaking melody under the carnage, and Grand Cadaver lean into it like pros as we move into the title track — and oh, does it groove. This is headbangable mastery, the kind of mid-tempo stomp that’ll make every old-school death metal fan in a five-mile radius tear up and whisper, “They still make ’em like this…”

“The Endless Dread” barrels forward with all the subtlety of a spiked mace to the chest. Relentless riffs, airtight production, and zero downtime until it cuts out and makes way for closer “Darkened Apathy.” It starts with a dark, distorted arpeggio, like we’re exploring a deep cave haunted by the demons of demons (Demon²). From there, the band shifts between slow, crushing stomps and bursts of speed, dropping a filthy breakdown midway through that could loosen foundation beams. Tremolo-picked leads dominate, before the song loops back to that opening demonic riff and ends like someone hit “STOP” on a cursed cassette player.

At just 16 minutes, The Rot Beneath doesn’t stick around long enough to wear out its welcome. Grand Cadaver aren’t here to break rules or chase trends. They’re here to remind you that when seasoned pros step into the death metal arena, they still know how to swing the axe. It’s chunky, groovy, and consistently engaging from the first note to the last — the kind of EP that leaves you wanting more instead of wondering when it’ll end.

It’s not wildly unique, but it doesn’t need to be. Grand Cadaver know their lane, and they’re flooring it.