{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2021}} {{Infobox album | name = Butchered at Birth | type = studio | artist = [[Cannibal Corpse]] | cover = ButcheredatbirthДP.JPG | alt = a zombie butcher pulls a stillborn corpse from a half-skeletonized dead woman while another stabs her torso. Dead babies in various states of decay are behind them. | released = July 1, 1991 | recorded = 1991 | venue = | studio = [[Morrisound Recording]], [[Tampa, Florida]] | genre = [[Death metal]] | length = 36:34 | label = [[Metal Blade]] | producer = [[Scott Burns (music producer)|Scott Burns]] | prev_title = [[Eaten Back to Life]] | prev_year = 1990 | next_title = [[Tomb of the Mutilated]] | next_year = 1992 }} {{Album ratings |rev1 = [[AllMusic]] |rev1score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>[{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r3258|pure_url=yes}} AllMusic review]</ref> | rev2 = ''[[Martin Popoff|Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal]]'' | rev2score = 6/10<ref>{{cite book |last1=Popoff |first1=Martin |author-link1=Martin Popoff |title=The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 3: The Nineties |publisher=[[Collector's Guide Publishing]] |year=2007 |location=[[Burlington, Ontario]], [[Canada]] |isbn=978-1-894959-62-9 |pages=70–71}}</ref> | rev3 = ''[[Kerrang!]]'' | rev3score = {{Rating|5|5}}<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Russell |first=Xavier |date=September 14, 1991 |title=Rekordz |magazine=[[Kerrang!]] |publisher=[[EMAP]] |issue=358 |page=19}}</ref> | rev4 = ''[[MusicHound Rock]]'' | rev4Score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref name="MH">{{cite book |last=Knopper |first=Steve |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781578590612/page/318/ |title=MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide |date=1999 |publisher=Visible Ink Press |pages=319–320 |via=[[Internet Archive]] |chapter=Death Metal|isbn=978-1-57859-061-2 }}</ref> }}
'''''Butchered at Birth''''' is the second studio album by American [[death metal]] band [[Cannibal Corpse]]. It was released on July 1, 1991 through [[Metal Blade Records]].
The album was recorded at [[Morrisound Recording]] in [[Tampa, Florida]] and was produced by [[Scott Burns (music producer)|Scott Burns]]. It is considered to be musically and lyrically more extreme than the band's debut, ''[[Eaten Back to Life]].'' The album's music represents an evolution to "pure death metal" from the [[thrash metal]]-oriented sound of its predecessor. Barnes stated that the album is a concept album about [[Butcher|butchery]]. Its cover artwork was created by comic book artist [[Vince Locke|Vincent Locke]], and depicts a pregnant woman being [[Dissection|dissected]] by zombies.
''Butchered'' remains a notorious entry in the band's discography, and has been censored by various entities at different points in its history.
==Background and recording== Cannibal Corpse began writing new material immediately following the release of their debut album, ''[[Eaten Back to Life]]''.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://tombofthemutilated.net/Paul-Mazurkiewicz-Butchered-At-Birth.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210729152435/https://tombofthemutilated.net/Paul-Mazurkiewicz-Butchered-At-Birth.html | archive-date=July 29, 2021 | title=Paul Mazurkiewicz on Butchered at Birth }}</ref> With their sophomore effort, Cannibal Corpse sought to create a [[heavy metal music|heavier]] sound and even more gruesome imagery than their debut. The band wrote and rehearsed the album in their storage space in Buffalo.<ref name="Disposable Underground">{{Cite web |date=October 2020 |title=Cannibal Corpse interview with Chris Barnes: From the Vault |url=https://disposableunderground.com/cannibal-corpse-interview-with-chris-barnes-from-the-vault/ |access-date=March 15, 2023 |website=Disposable Underground}}</ref>
During this time, the band was having 4-hour practice sessions five days per week.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://disposableunderground.com/cannibal-corpse-interview-with-chris-barnes-from-the-vault/ | title=Go back in time with Chris Barnes to the "Eaten Back to Life" album | date=October 28, 2020 }}</ref> The writing process for the album's instrumentation was a collaborative effort.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGPot3rP53o&t=4654s | title=Cannibal Corpse - Centuries of Torment - DVD 1 - History (OFFICIAL) | website=[[YouTube]] | date=November 20, 2013 }}</ref> Guitarist [[Jack Owen]] recalled that "everybody was writing tons of shit" and vocalist [[Chris Barnes (musician)|Chris Barnes]] said the band was "writing a song every two weeks."<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuky7k6Ajmg | title=RichardMetalFan Interviews! Ep. 240: Jack Owen of Six Feet Under | website=[[YouTube]] | date=March 27, 2024 }}</ref> Drummer [[Paul Mazurkiewicz]] said "it was months of us trying to be the most brutal band on earth."<ref name=":0">{{cite web | url=https://tombofthemutilated.net/Paul-Mazurkiewicz-Butchered-At-Birth.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210729152435/https://tombofthemutilated.net/Paul-Mazurkiewicz-Butchered-At-Birth.html | archive-date=July 29, 2021 | title=Paul Mazurkiewicz on Butchered at Birth }}</ref> He claims to have written the opening riff in "Gutted."<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81vjL8Ytti0 |title=Paul Mazurkiewicz (Cannibal Corpse) On 20 Questions With Scooter |date=2021-06-16 |last=Granville Guitars |access-date=2025-03-06 |via=YouTube}}</ref>
Following their experience recording ''[[Eaten Back to Life]]'' at [[Morrisound Recording]] in [[Tampa, Florida|Tampa]], the band became entrenched in the [[Florida death metal|growing death metal scene]] there, and subsequently made frequent trips to the city. The spirit of competition within the scene encouraged the band to keep a quick pace with releases, and ''Butchered at Birth'' was recorded over a two-week period.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://todestrieb.co.uk/blogs/daily-noise/30-years-ago-cannibal-corpse-release-butchered-at-birth | title=30 Years Ago: CANNIBAL CORPSE release Butchered at Birth | date=July 1991 }}</ref> Producer [[Scott Burns (music producer)|Scott Burns]], revered within the Florida death metal scene, assisted the band in refining the sound of their debut to achieve even more dissonant and guttural sonic textures.<ref name="Disposable Underground" /> Burns noted that very little production was required for Barnes' vocals, which he felt "sounded heavy on their own."<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGPot3rP53o&t=3153s |title=Cannibal Corpse - Centuries of Torment - DVD 1 - History (OFFICIAL) |date=2013-11-20 |last=Metal Blade Records |access-date=2025-03-20 |via=YouTube}}</ref> The album's [[liner notes]] explicitly state that no [[Pitch shifting|harmonizers]] were used on the vocal production. [[Karl Sanders]] of [[Nile (band)|Nile]] recalled in the ''[[Centuries of Torment: The First 20 Years|Centuries of Torment]]'' documentary that when the album was first released, "people were going, 'how can a human voice do that!?'"<ref name=":2">{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGPot3rP53o&t=3153s|title=Cannibal Corpse - Centuries of Torment - DVD 1 - History (OFFICIAL)|date=2013-11-20|last=Metal Blade Records|access-date=2025-03-20|via=YouTube}}</ref>
== Music and lyrics == The album represents the band's transition to "pure [[death metal]]" from the [[Thrash metal|thrash]]-orientated sound of their debut, an assessment that is agreed upon by music journalists and the band members themselves. Founding guitarist [[Jack Owen]] believes ''Butchered at Birth'' showcases the band's greatest evolution between albums. The music is now considered to have a "[[classic death metal]]" sound.<ref>{{cite web |date=March 27, 2024 |title=RichardMetalFan Interviews! Ep. 240: Jack Owen of Six Feet Under |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuky7k6Ajmg |website=[[YouTube]]}}</ref><ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=An Essential Guide to Cannibal Corpse │ Exclaim! |url=https://exclaim.ca/music/article/an_essential_guide_to_cannibal_corpse |access-date=2025-01-06 |website=An Essential Guide to Cannibal Corpse │ Exclaim! |language=en}}</ref>
The album's style has been called "one dimensional"<ref>{{Citation |title=Butchered at Birth - Cannibal Corpse {{!}} Album {{!}} AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/butchered-at-birth-mw0000618690 |access-date=2025-01-02 |language=en}}</ref> and "rough around the edges." Owen retrospectively described the album's [[song structures]] as "just riff after riff" and not "[making] much sense." According to bassist [[Alex Webster]], "we were convinced the more unorthodox the music, the less mainstream it was. It was heavier to be off-the-wall as far as arrangements go."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Dick |first1=Chris |title=Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces |publisher=Da Capo Press |pages=145}}</ref> In addition to its extremely raw songwriting, ''Butchered'' is also noted for its "harsh, barely [[Musical tuning|tuned]] guitars" and its "[[beehive]]-wall of [[white noise]]" guitar [[Tone (musical instrument)#Amplified instruments|tone]]. According Zeke Ferrington of [[Gear Gods]], "There’s so much [[Gain (electronics)|gain]] and so much [[Treble (sound)|treble]] that you can’t identify individual [[Musical note|notes]] anymore. The guitar lines meld into these indefinite, evolving, waves of unsettling [[Audio frequency|frequencies]] [...] it actually adds to the revolting brutality of [the] album."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ferrington |first=Zeke |date=2016-11-18 |title=The Best "Worst" Distortion Tones Ever – Great Death Metal with Disgusting Distortion |url=https://geargods.net/editorials/great-death-metal-disgusting-distortion/ |access-date=2025-01-01 |website=Gear Gods |language=en-US}}</ref> [[Chris Barnes (musician)|Chris Barnes]]' "grunted" vocals are largely unintelligible.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Purcell |first1=Natalie J. |title=Death Metal Music: The Passion and Politics of a Subculture |publisher=McFarland |page=62}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=An Essential Guide to Cannibal Corpse │ Exclaim! |url=https://exclaim.ca/music/article/an_essential_guide_to_cannibal_corpse |access-date=2025-01-06 |website=An Essential Guide to Cannibal Corpse │ Exclaim! |language=en}}</ref> Despite a statement in the album's [[liner notes]] that no [[Pitch shifting|harmonizers]] were used on his vocal performance, the album opener "Meathook Sodomy" contains an intro that prominently utilizes the pitch shifting technique on the vocals.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=DiVita |first=Joe DiVitaJoe |date=2024-03-19 |title=Cannibal Corpse Albums Ranked From Worst to Best |url=https://loudwire.com/cannibal-corpse-albums-ranked/ |access-date=2025-09-06 |website=Loudwire |language=en}}</ref>
At the time of the album's release, its lyrics were considered to be the most gruesome and extreme that the genre had to offer, exploring macabre subject matter such as [[dismemberment]], [[torture]], [[infanticide]], and [[sadomasochism]].<ref>{{Citation |title=Butchered at Birth - Cannibal Corpse {{!}} Album {{!}} AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/butchered-at-birth-mw0000618690 |access-date=2025-01-02 |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> The album's lyrics were singlehandedly penned by Barnes, who strove to write the very first death metal [[concept album]], and has stated that the album's central theme is "[[Butcher|butchery]]".<ref name="Disposable Underground" /> He explained: "The beginning introduction finishes it off. Backwards it says ["feed off the carcasses of babies"]. I put myself in different points of view in different songs. [...] The [album] is pretty visual, it's all there. You don't have to ask any questions. That's how I write. I get a title in my head and write a little story."<ref>{{cite web |date=July 1991 |title=30 Years Ago: CANNIBAL CORPSE release Butchered at Birth |url=https://todestrieb.co.uk/blogs/daily-noise/30-years-ago-cannibal-corpse-release-butchered-at-birth}}</ref>
Cannibal Corpse's use of [[shock value]] has drawn comparisons to [[Gwar]]. Alex Henderson of [[AllMusic|Allmusic]] assessed that ''Butchered'' "comes off as a [[Parody music|parody]] of death metal and [[grindcore]] more than anything", describing the album as the "musical equivalent of [[B movie|B-movie]] horror flicks."<ref name=":1">{{cite web |title=Butchered at Birth - Cannibal Corpse | Album | AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/butchered-at-birth-mw0000618690 |website=[[AllMusic]]}}</ref>
== Artwork == ''Butchered at Birth's'' infamous album artwork is a [[watercolor painting]] depicting "evil [[zombie]] doctors pulling a [[Dead baby jokes|dead baby]] as it comes out of a dead woman," according to Greg Pratt of ''[[Exclaim!|Exclaim]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cannibal Corpse │ Exclaim! |url=https://exclaim.ca/music/article/cannibal_corpse-staring_through_eyes_of_banned |access-date=2025-01-23 |website=Cannibal Corpse │ Exclaim! |language=en}}</ref> Joe Divita of ''[[Loudwire]]'' stated that "it appears they have committed [this act] many times before, as indicated by the strung up infants behind them."<ref>{{Cite web |last=DiVita |first=Joe DiVitaJoe |date=2024-10-29 |title=The 31 Scariest Metal Album Covers of All Time |url=https://loudwire.com/scariest-metal-album-covers/ |access-date=2025-07-26 |website=Loudwire |language=en}}</ref> The image was created by longtime collaborator [[Vince Locke]] and is frequently identified as one of the most gruesome album covers of all time.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Krovatin |first=Chris |date=July 2021 |title=30 Years On, 'Butchered At Birth' Proves That There's Still No One As Disgusting As Cannibal Corpse |url=https://www.wearethepit.com/2021/07/30-years-on-butchered-at-birth-proves-that-theres-still-no-one-as-disgusting-as-cannibal-corpse/ |access-date=March 14, 2023 |website=The Pit}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=October 29, 2024 |title=The 31 Scariest Metal Album Covers of All Time |url=https://loudwire.com/scariest-metal-album-covers/ |website=[[Loudwire]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=25 Controversial and Disturbing Album Covers |url=https://www.ranker.com/list/controversial-album-covers/christopher-shultz |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=Ranker |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Millspublished |first=Matt |date=2023-10-31 |title=The 10 scariest heavy metal album covers of all time |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/scariest-metal-album-covers-iron-maiden-black-sabbath-slayer |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=louder |language=en}}</ref> [[Metal Blade Records]] president [[Brian Slagel]] called it one of the greatest album covers he has ever seen. Former vocalist Chris Barnes claims his jaw "dropped to the floor" upon first sight of the album's artwork, and believes it to be "the ultimate death metal album cover." Current vocalist [[George Fisher (musician)|George Fisher]] recalled his first time seeing the artwork: "I saw that cover and was like, 'oh my -- damn. That has got to piss some people off.' [...] It's one thing to have people dying in your [albums], well you start messing with children, and people start getting pissed off."<ref>{{cite web |date=November 20, 2013 |title=Cannibal Corpse - Centuries of Torment - DVD 1 - History (OFFICIAL) |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGPot3rP53o&t=4654s |website=[[YouTube]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lW7d4ilEy30&t=1656s |title=SIX FEET UNDER {{!}} Chris Barnes: Cannibal Corpse, Horror & Death Metal Legacy {{!}} Garza Podcast 164 |date=2025-02-17 |last=Garza Podcast |access-date=2025-05-04 |via=YouTube}}</ref> Original guitarist Bob Rusay told ''[[Decibel (magazine)|Decibel]]'' in 2008 that "when you look at her lying on the table and her arm sliding off her bone, it gets you."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dick |first=Chris |title=Precious Metal |publisher=Da Capo Press |pages=159}}</ref>
== Critical reception == {{Missing information|section|contemporary reviews for this album|date=April 2026}}
== Cultural impact and legacy == ''Butchered at Birth'' is considered to be a highly controversial album in the history of the death metal genre.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cannibal Corpse │ Exclaim! |url=https://exclaim.ca/music/article/cannibal_corpse-staring_through_eyes_of_banned |access-date=2025-01-23 |website=Cannibal Corpse │ Exclaim! |language=en}}</ref> Cannibal Corpse drummer [[Paul Mazurkiewicz]] believes the album to be the band's "most notorious to date"; some [[Record shop|record stores]] reportedly refused to sell the album to patrons under the age of 18. According to [[Metal Blade Records]] president [[Brian Slagel]]: "We had been through controversy before with the whole [[Parents Music Resource Center|PMRC]] thing in the '80s, so that was nothing new. [...] I actually like the fact that people were shocked{{Sic}} at it all."<ref>{{Cite web |last=DiVita |first=Joe DiVitaJoe |date=2024-10-29 |title=The 31 Scariest Metal Album Covers of All Time |url=https://loudwire.com/scariest-metal-album-covers/ |access-date=2025-07-26 |website=Loudwire |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-07-29 |title=Paul Mazurkiewicz On Butchered At Birth |url=https://tombofthemutilated.net/Paul-Mazurkiewicz-Butchered-At-Birth.html |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210729152435/https://tombofthemutilated.net/Paul-Mazurkiewicz-Butchered-At-Birth.html |archive-date=July 29, 2021 |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=tombofthemutilated.net}}</ref> In spite of censorship issues early on, the album's cover artwork is now considered to be iconic. In 2014, an [[internet meme]] depicting celebrity chef [[Gordon Ramsay]] screaming at the zombies in the artwork made rounds on [[Twitter]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-01-09 |title=The Internet's Funniest Cannibal Corpse Memes |url=https://loudwire.com/30-funniest-cannibal-corpse-memes/ |access-date=2026-02-15 |website=Loudwire |language=en}}</ref> In 2024, ''Loudwire'' named the album's cover artwork as one of the "31 Scariest Metal Album Covers of All Time". Staff writer Joe DiVita said: "This album was released when death metal was still finding its way and confirmed the worst nightmares of parents."<ref>{{Cite web |last=DiVita |first=Joe DiVitaJoe |date=2024-10-29 |title=The 31 Scariest Metal Album Covers of All Time |url=https://loudwire.com/scariest-metal-album-covers/ |access-date=2025-07-26 |website=Loudwire |language=en}}</ref>
Retrospective reviews of the album have been mostly positive. Alex Henderson of [[AllMusic]] gave the album four stars out of five and wrote: "The rockers are one-dimensional, but then [again], they never claimed to be anything else. This band's obvious goal was to deliver the musical equivalent of [[B movie|B]]-movie [[Horror film|horror flick]], and on that level, the album is outrageously successful."<ref>{{Citation |title=Butchered at Birth - Cannibal Corpse {{!}} Album {{!}} AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/butchered-at-birth-mw0000618690 |access-date=2025-01-02 |language=en}}</ref> In 2020, Chris Krovatin of ''[[Kerrang!]]'' ranked ''Butchered'' as the best Cannibal Corpse album. He said: "While some bands have a sophomore slump, Cannibal Corpse used their second album to up the ante on everything that made them unique. [...] No words can accurately describe the hideous, gut-ripping power of ''Butchered At Birth'' -- you just have to experience it yourself, and try not to puke while doing so."<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-09-22 |title=Cannibal Corpse: Every Album Ranked From Worst To Best |url=https://www.kerrang.com/every-cannibal-corpse-album-ranked-from-worst-to-best |access-date=2025-09-06 |website=Kerrang! |language=en}}</ref> In 2023, original vocalist [[Chris Barnes (musician)|Chris Barnes]] himself named the album as among his favorite death metal albums of all time, along with ''[[Leprosy (album)|Leprosy]]'', ''[[Seven Churches (album)|Seven Churches]]'' and ''[[Slowly We Rot]]''. He said of the album: "I'm going to have to [...] kind of pat myself on the back. That was a huge album in death metal as far as our twist on the whole thing and I think it influenced a lot of people just as Possessed influenced a lot of bands to move in a certain direction."<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-03-07 |title=Chris Barnes Names His Favorite Death Metal Albums, Includes One of His Own |url=https://loudwire.com/six-feet-underchris-barnes-favorite-death-metal-albums/ |access-date=2026-04-05 |website=Loudwire |language=en}}</ref>
In 2026, original guitarist [[Jack Owen]] cited the album from his catalog that he was the least satisfied with, saying: "The production could be a lot better and the writing process was a little more stress filled, I think. We were trying to make up for sounding simple on the first album, so we overwrote a little bit. So, yeah, I think that's the only one that's hard for me to listen to, to this day... Of the first four albums, it's the one that's probably number four out of those four — for me, anyway."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://blabbermouth.net/news/jack-owen-on-cannibal-corpses-butchered-at-birth-that-album-is-hard-for-me-to-listen-to|title=JACK OWEN On CANNIBAL CORPSE's 'Butchered At Birth': That Album Is 'Hard For Me To Listen To'|website=[[Blabbermouth.net]]|access-date=2026-03-29}}</ref>
==Track listing== All lyrics written by [[Chris Barnes (musician)|Chris Barnes]]. All music written by Cannibal Corpse. {{Track listing | total_length = 40:30 | title1 = Meat Hook Sodomy | length1 = 5:46 | title2 = Gutted | length2 = 3:15 | title3 = Living Dissection | length3 = 4:00 | title4 = Under the Rotted Flesh | length4 = 5:04 | title5 = Covered with Sores | length5 = 3:17 | title6 = Vomit the Soul | note6 = featuring [[Glen Benton]] | length6 = 4:30 | title7 = Butchered at Birth | length7 = 2:45 | title8 = Rancid Amputation | length8 = 3:16 | title9 = Innards Decay | length9 = 4:38 }} {{track listing | headline = 2002 remastered edition bonus track | title10 = Covered with Sores | note10 = live | length10 = 3:59 }}
==Personnel== '''Cannibal Corpse''' * [[Chris Barnes (musician)|Chris Barnes]] – vocals * Bob Rusay – guitars * [[Jack Owen]] – guitars * [[Alex Webster]] – bass * [[Paul Mazurkiewicz]] – drums
'''Additional musicians''' * [[Glen Benton]] – backing vocals on "Vomit the Soul" * [[Pat O'Brien (guitarist)|Pat O'Brien]] – lead guitar on live bonus track * [[George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher]] – vocals on live bonus track
'''Technical personnel''' * [[Scott Burns (music producer)|Scott Burns]] – production, engineering * Eddie Shreyer – mastering * [[Vincent Locke]] – artwork, logo * Joe Giron – photo * Brian Ames – graphic design
==References== {{reflist}}
{{Cannibal Corpse}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:1991 albums]] [[Category:Cannibal Corpse albums]] [[Category:Metal Blade Records albums]] [[Category:Albums produced by Scott Burns (record producer)]] [[Category:Albums recorded at Morrisound Recording]] [[Category:Obscenity controversies in music]]