Devourment

Devourment, the Lone Star State death metallers, signed to imprints including United Guttural and Corpse Gristle, an association that placed them squarely amid the nihilistic sonic filth associated with slam death metal predecessors Cannibal Corpse and Suffocation. Multiple breakups and reunions since their mid-'90s arrival have not dislodged the group from the leading edge of the brutal death scene, where they have delivered landmark albums such as Molesting the Decapitated in 1999, Unleash the Carnivore in 2009, and Obscene Majesty in 2019.

The band formed in 1995 after the dissolution of Dallas-based death dealers Necrocide, cycling through personnel while releasing several demos before stabilizing around Ruben Rosas on vocals, Bryan Wynn and Kevin Clark on guitars, Mike Majewski on bass, and Brad Fincher on drums. A 1999 agreement with United Guttural produced Molesting the Decapitated, whose nonstop blastbeats, caustic riffs, wretched subject matter, and larynx-shredding vocals gained traction in the metal underground until Rosas's arrest immediately after the record's release party resulted in a two-and-a-half-year sentence.

The ensemble splintered during that interval yet reconstituted in the early 2000s, with Braxton Henry assuming guitar duties from Bryan Wynn and former demo vocalist Wayne Knupp substituting for the imprisoned Rosas. They tracked the notorious one-off single "Babykiller" for the Southern Uprising compilation and assembled their own collection, 1.3.8., which compiled every track from Molesting the Decapitated alongside three demo cuts and the new single. Various lineups persisted after Rosas's release before converging on Majewski, Rosas, Eric Park, and Chris Andrews for the long-delayed sophomore release Butcher the Weak in 2006. Founding member Wayne Knupp died the next year from substance-abuse complications.

The same configuration recorded the punishing Unleash the Carnivore in 2009, whose cover art came from acclaimed death metal artists Dan Seagrave and Pär Olofsson. Following completion of the supporting tour in 2010, the band signed with Relapse Records and commenced work on the next album. Erik Rutan produced the resulting Conceived in Sewage, issued in 2013.

Majewski and Park departed the following year, bassist Dave Spencer arrived, and drummer Brad Fincher was reinstated. The revised lineup entered the studio with producer D. Braxton Henry in 2018 and surfaced the next year with the group's fifth full-length, Obscene Majesty.