Gimmicks are all well and good, but if you don't have the musical talent to back up your attention-seeking... . When your website is under investigation by the federal authorities for being... well, just plain nasty, you know you're going to have to deliver. And Cadaver Inc do, but only just.

Discipline is a solid album, but it's difficult to get excited about yet more thrash-tinged black metal. While not as backward-looking as a lot of extreme metal, Cadaver Inc don't appear to have moved a great distance since guitarist Neddo (aka Anders Odden) formed Cadaver over ten years ago. The sound has developed enough to avoid stagnation, but it isn't exaclty fresh any more.

The album starts as it obviously means to go on. Primal is a ferocious slab of metal, and a quick glance at the tracklisting - Murderhead, Die Like This, Snapper Organs - seems to confirm that more of the same is on the horizon. Flashy solos on Murderhead and Deliverance apart, there isn't much to make the first few tracks stand out.

It's when they occasionally let up that Cadaver Inc are most interesting. The tribal drumming and Iommi-esque riffing of Rupture gives the listener a chance to breathe for a minute, before being thrust once again into a maelstrom of impenetrable guitars, unnaturally fast drumming, and rotting vocal cords. Similarly, Point Zero sees the band trade their souped-up Carcass impressions for stoner guitars, and seems positively mellow, compared to what's before and after. One is reminded of early Napalm Death songs, which usually contained a riff repeated four times, then a barrage of noise.

Reptile Robots and Manic offer yet more carefully-focused rage, Killtech is made special by some quite wicked spoken word vocals, and the title track is saved from mediocrity only by some Corrosion of Conformity style riffing, which closes the album on a high. Ultimately though, despite the many treats on offer, Discipline is dominated by its less remarkable elements. A shame, because Cadaver Inc obviously have more to offer, if only they'd take that extra step towards innovation.