New Autopsy Song Makes Me Wonder: “What the Heck Does ‘Arch Cadaver’ Mean?”

The new Autopsy song, “Arch Cadaver,” is unsurprisingly awesome — like my ex-wife, it’s fast, loose, and ugly. I definitely recommend that you listen to it ASAP.

And with that recommendation out of the way, I’d like to take a moment to wonder aloud: what the hell is an “Arch Cadaver”?

I assume, based on both the lil’ priest on the album cover and the lyrical themes of every other metal album ever, that it’s supposed to be some kind of anti-religion thing, a play the title of archbishop. (As a Jew, I have to ask: is there such a thing as an “archcardinal”? That would make the “cadaver” pun make a little more sense, but Google leads me to believe that there is no such position.) But it’s not a very funny joke. Not because it’s offensive or whatever — I mean it just literally is not all that funny.

But maybe I’m wrong, maybe they don’t mean it as a spoof on religion at all. Maybe they mean “arch” to be synonymous with “primary” — as in the phrase “arch nemesis.” Or maybe they mean “cadaver” in a metaphorical sense, and they’re just really bummed that their favorite architectural trope has gone out of fashion. I don’t even know if that’s true, I’m really just rambling now.

ANYWAY, like I said, killer song! You listen here. Autopsy’s new album, The Headless Ritual, comes out July 2 on Peaceville.