Reader, I don’t think you quite understand the degree to which an old school death metal band — both named after a reference to one of my favorite horror movies and playing songs named after references to other horror movies — qualifies as “my shit.” (The answer? “Very much.” Maybe even “extremely.”)

On paper, Chicago quintet Necronomicon Ex Mortis seem to check all the right boxes with their new EP, You and Your Friends are Dead: Game Over. (Henceforth, just “YAYFAD”) They check ‘em so hard that, in practice, it’d be near impossible to fully live up to my subjectively lofty expectations. And okay, they don’t entirely do so. But the record still scratches a certain itch and is well worth a half-hour of your time.

Unsurprisingly, what you’ll notice most across YAYFAD’s five tracks are the riffs. For the most part, guitarists Manuel Barbará and Michael Nystrom Bala keep things simple and straightforward — you’re getting good, old-fashioned pulverization, dammit, and you’re gonna like it. This approach works best on a song like “Leprechaun” — the EP’s shortest track, where the aggression feels all the more concentrated and potent. “The Dead Zone” is another highlight, with a sweeping, swirling cadence that feels like a slow, forcible descent into the abyss.

But some of these cuts end up working better than others. “My Bloody Valentine,” for example, has an absolutely killer opening — pummeling riffs that give way to a terrific, almost-crossover-thrash groove — but the band lets it go to waste by adding a handful of unnecessary vignette parts that drag the song out over more than six minutes. Similarly, “In the Mouth of Madness” works well enough while you’re listening to it, but struggles to stand out enough to remain in your memory when you’re not doing so.

In the end, though, there’s more to like here than not to. If you like old-school horror, old school death metal, or both, Necronomicon Ex Mortis might just scratch the itch for ya.

Keep it heavy,
—Dan

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You and Your Friends are Dead: Game Over will be available June 29, 2024. For more information on Necronomicon Ex Mortis, visit the band’s Linktree.