EP Review, Released September 19, 2025 via Inertial Music

Italy’s Behind Starvation have arrived with their debut EP The Grief Sower, an opening salvo that already sounds battle-hardened. Rooted in modern melodic death metal, the band blends Gothenburg-inspired aggression with a distinctly personal edge. Across five tracks and just over twenty minutes, the EP delivers brutality sharpened into catharsis.

Opening the Wound

The EP wastes no time: “Negation’s Shape” bursts forth with a moody, haunting intro before collapsing into unrelenting brutality. The riffs slice like cold steel while Alessandro Di Rosa’s vocals roar with suffocating weight, embodying despair as something alive. It sets the tone—this is not casual listening, but a descent into pain that demands confrontation.

The Heart of the EP

The title track, “Grief Sower,” encapsulates the band’s vision. It tells the story of a grieving father, and Alessandro Di Rosa channels that role with conviction, turning pain into something transformative. The song’s relentless pacing mirrors that journey, grief carried into unstoppable momentum. Guitarist Giorgio “Oblio” Giuliano explains:

“For me, it is important to talk about the whole process: exposing the pain, the grief, speaking about existence and its darkest parts. But at the same time, without leaving out the fact that the entire process needs to be understood, and that there can be an end to the pain, or at least a way to accept it… Not by forgetting, but by evolving the pain itself.”

Charged with Fury

“Despite Existence” pushes the intensity even further, with razor-sharp guitars and pummeling drums driving a narrative of violence against human nature itself. Its tempo shifts keep the listener hooked, while “Collapsing Monuments” layers atmosphere onto savagery, highlighted by rapid-fire drumming and a guitar solo that feels both searing and necessary. The sudden tempo change three-quarters in is a brief gasp before the plunge back into destruction.

The Cover that Conquers

Closing with a bold step, Behind Starvation take The Rasmus’ radio-hit “In the Shadows,” reshaping it into something venomous. Giorgio admits he chose it for the challenge of making it their own, and the result is staggering.

“I used to listen to it on the radio when I was young, but that’s about it. I’ve always had this thing of making ‘my own version’ of famous songs, so I wanted to bring that into our band. The riffs came out naturally, and I added my own style into the melodic lines. It almost sounds like we turned this Finnish song into a ‘Swedish’ one—as if The Rasmus were from Gothenburg, haha!”

The cover keeps the melodic skeleton but dresses it in Gothenburg steel. The song becomes less a tribute and more of a conquest.

Final Verdict

The Grief Sower is extreme, ruthless, and unapologetically bloodthirsty. Yet within its walls of sound lies a catharsis, an acknowledgment of suffering and the possibility of transformation. Behind Starvation are storytellers of grief, architects of confrontation, and seekers of renewal through pain.

If you crave heaviness that doesn’t just batter but also speaks to the human struggle, this EP delivers in spades. For those who don’t like it hard, look elsewhere. For those searching for release after profound emotional scars, The Grief Sower is waiting with open arms and sharpened teeth.

Get the EP now at Inertial Music and Bandcamp

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Behind Starvation – The Grief Sower