5 out of 5

Label: Self Immolation

Produced by: Josh Bonati (vinyl remaster)

One of my favorite Foetus albums, back in its original form, and sounding so good.

There’s a minor quibble on discogs about discoloration (the reissue / remaster is white), and also that the thickness of the vinyl (180g) is pointless given the original was standard – not really a complaint I get? Like, we can debate sound benefits of vinyl weight, but why is that a downside to have it over a flimsier LP? But anyhow, I only bring this up to report that I’m very happy with my copy, and that it’s an absolute, undeniable upgrade over the CD – though I can’t speak to the original wax, of course.

We’re missing a lyric sheet, but we’ve gained a cool poster done in the same art style as the original lyric sheet, and the art has been faithfully reproduced (and looks very clean and sharp – colors, at least in an image comparison, appear more distinct).

Josh Bonati’s remastering is a work of art, shaving off a bit of the tinny edge of early Thirlwell and warming up the low end bounce, allowing the funkiness of chaoticness of these songs to play side by side. Also, as a bonus to someone who’s only ever listened to a digital format, there’s a nice transition in the songs from the end of the A-side to the start of the B-side; pretty sweet when discovering that some things might’ve been intentional for a different format.