Black Sunday: Artillery Breath / Dismemberment - Wartorn Split 7" (2012)

This Black Sunday, from the vinyl to the music, lives up to its namesake and is about as charred as it gets. Laurelville, Ohio's Dismemberment teamed up with fellow Buckeye deathly thrashers Artillery Breath for a self-released split 7" guaranteed to satiate any fan of extreme metal.

Artillery Breath occupy the A-side with a selection from their Inhuman album, "Rigor Mortis Has Set In." This little record stands as my introduction to the band's music and has done its job as, wholly impressed, I plan to acquire more ASAP.

Dismemberment are longtime favorites of this site and have consistently delivered a healthy variety of self-released material, all of which is top-notch in quality. Their B-side offering is no disappointment, serving as a sampler of sorts, culling "Dementia Decay" from their debut EP, The Condemned, and "Gateways to the Past" from their latest, Denied Salvation.

The record itself is another product of Ohio, pressed at Musicol, and sounds fantastic. The layout, by Dismemberment's own Jacob Shively, fills the double-sided foldover with some fantastic photographs and a nice, subtle, consistent aesthetic linking the two bands. My favorite aspect, of course, is the cover art from Tony Karnes, who also dreamt up the killer imagery for the band's "Perpetual Malice" release (currently featured on their long-sleeve tee). The marriage of military and mutant mutilation is absolutely inspired.

I believe this Wartorn split saw 300 copies pressed with each band holding 150. It appears as if Artillery Breath may currently offer theirs at live dates and Dismemberment also have theirs for sale online here.