Album Review: Casket – In The Long Run We Are All Dead (Neckbreaker Records)

Casket, the iconic underground death metal machine, are back with their brand-new full-length album, ‘In the Long Run We Are All Dead’, out January 23rd, 2026, via Neckbreaker Records.

35-years and counting. For any band, that is an immense achievement, but for a band who have remained in the underground extreme scene, sporadically releasing records and playing live, and all while staying true to their core death metal sound, it’s even more impressive. Unyielding and unforgiving, it’s an eleven-track, near forty-five-minute blast of garish ugliness and heaviness that all fans of old-school death will revel in.

An explosion of brutality greets the listener as The Will to Comply arrives in delightfully seditious fashion. The speed and ferocity of the instruments is one thing, the throaty roars and growls are another, but the chunky tempo drops are what helps make this such a beast. It sets the bar high as far as heaviness goes but there’s very little that doesn’t at least match it.

One such example is the following Highest Thrones, which comes with a bevy of serrated riffs and skull-busting drumbeats. Another is Seeds of Desolation, an aggressive assault of chugging guitars and guttural vocals, whereas another is the belligerent and brutish sound that emanates from Hammer, Knife, Spade. There isn’t much in the way of originality, but who needs that when faced with barbarism in aural form?

Still, it’s nice to be surprised occasionally and Casket have the odd one here and there. First, with Mirrors, a track that arrives early on the album and takes on a synthy fantastical form for 53-seconds. Later, there is Necrowaves, a 43-second showcase of building dread that sounds like it could be an intro for a metalcore track. It’s not, obviously.

Elsewhere, the bone-crushing, skull-smashing, soul-destroying heaviness doesn’t let up with the snarling Skull Bunker, the vile Mainstream Mutilation, the furious Fundamental Rot, and the eye-bulging viciousness of Strangulation Culture. There’s a lot of heft here, alongside undeniable focused intensity.

Finally, it’s Graveyard Stomper and dare I say, Casket get a bit groovy here. Only a bit, but you might be surprised to find your hips moving alongside the usual head banging ways. A solid, enjoyable, and satisfying end to an album worthy of Casket’s reputation.

Casket – In the Long Run We Are All Dead Track Listing:

1. The Will To Comply
2. Highest Thrones
3. Mirrors
4. Seeds Of Desolation
5. Hammer, Knife, Spade
6. Skull Bunker
7. Necrowaves
8. Mainstream Mutilation
9. Fundamental Rot
10. Strangulation Culture
11. Graveyard Stomper

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