1. Pick a serial killer. Any will do.
2. Write darkly humourous and somewhat mocking lyrics about his crimes.
3. Toss in some simplistic riffs.
4. Add a catchy chorus.
5. Repeat till enough material to produced to fill a CD.

Yes, they are sadly that predictable. The Macabre trio were never the most accomplished or technical of musicians, but compensated for their musical shortcomings through the creation of a unique sound and the adoption of a then fairly novel lyrical obsession with serial murderers. But what once were mere defining elements have degenerated into a formula that is adhered to almost religiously. The ubiquitous black humour of the lyrics is likely to produce a smile -- they may even generate a snigger -- but the joke fades fast and one is left with the music, which is sadly lacking. Macabre are not one of those bands that undergo Ulverian shifts in sound, but even to a Marduk fanatic the albums would sound too similar to each other -- the only substantial change has been the dumping of the more punk-like elements present in their initial efforts.

To end on a positive point, the bass notes are easily distinguishable and it is placed on an equal footing with the other instruments in the mix; after years of listening largely to trebly black metal, where the bass may as well not be there at all, and its sidelining in most death metal, it is a pleasure to actually hear an extreme metal album with such a distinct bass. This however does not somehow magically transform _Murder Metal_ into a worthwhile purchase, and the interested reader is encouraged to investigate classics such as _Grim Reality_ or _Sinister Slaughter_ rather then purchase this recycled drivel.