Hammer Smashed Face

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Hammer Smashed Face
a face that has been gruesomely destroyed by numerous hammer blows; a claw hammer is still wedged in the temple
EP by
ReleasedMarch 23, 1993
RecordedJanuary 1993 – Niagara Falls, New York
GenreDeath metal
Length26:17
LabelMetal Blade
Producer
  • Dennis Fura
  • Cannibal Corpse
Cannibal Corpse chronology
Tomb of the Mutilated
(1992)
Hammer Smashed Face
(1993)
The Bleeding
(1994)
Single version
Cover for the single version of "Hammer Smashed Face", which was originally from the album Tomb of the Mutilated (1992)
Audio
"Hammer Smashed Face" on YouTube

Hammer Smashed Face is the debut EP and single by American death metal band Cannibal Corpse, released in 1993 by Metal Blade Records. There are two versions of the release, a single version that features the title song "Hammer Smashed Face" with two covers of songs by Black Sabbath and Possessed, and the EP version which includes the three tracks of the single version along with two original Cannibal Corpse tracks. The single version and the EP version both have different cover artwork.

Critical reception[edit]

"Hammer Smashed Face" is the band's most popular song, mainly due to a shortened version appearing in the 1994 comedy film Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.[1] Since it is included on Tomb of the Mutilated, it was banned from Germany until June 2006, when it was played at a 2006 performance at Essen.

When asked if he had a favorite Cannibal Corpse album, singer Chris Barnes described the Hammer Smashed EP as "one of the underrated ones".[2] Barnes also hailed the group's cover of Black Sabbath's "Zero the Hero" as "one of the greatest".[2]

In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked the song No. 93 on their list of the 100 greatest heavy metal songs.[3]

Track listing[edit]

EP version
No.TitleLength
1."Hammer Smashed Face"4:04
2."The Exorcist" (Possessed cover)4:37
3."Zero the Hero" (Black Sabbath cover)6:35
4."Meat Hook Sodomy"5:47
5."Shredded Humans"5:12
Total length:26:17
Single version
No.TitleLength
1."Hammer Smashed Face"4:04
2."The Exorcist" (Possessed cover)4:37
3."Zero the Hero" (Black Sabbath cover)6:35
Total length:15:17

Personnel[edit]

Cannibal Corpse
Production
  • Scott Burns, Dennis Fura and Cannibal Corpse – producer

References[edit]

  1. ^ J. Purcell, Natalie (2003). Death Metal music: the passion and politics of a subculture. McFarland. p. 66. ISBN 0786415851.
  2. ^ a b Morgan, Anthony (June 2007). ""Ghosts of the Undead" - Six Feet Under vocalist Chris Barnes delivers ten bludgeons of his philosophical hatchet with seventh record Commandment". Lucem Fero. Archived from the original on 2008-04-14. Retrieved 2008-05-30.
  3. ^ "The 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. 13 March 2023.