In a city filled with incredibly talented musicians, there’s one band bringing back the old style of metal. Vivisection, a metal band consisting of high school students, is slowly working their way to the top in Worcester. They’re accomplishing this by blending thrash metal with death metal. 

What makes Vivisection different from all the rest is the style in which they play. Their music consists of fast, precise guitar riffs, with intense drumming, and powerful vocals. When they perform, it’s an experience rather than just a show. They’re completely dedicated to what they do, improving more and more every day.

“We’re the only death metal band from Worcester, and the energy we bring isn’t matched by any other band from this area,” said lead guitarist and vocalist Luke. For Luke and his bandmates, metal music is a way to express themselves, to channel their passion into something real, and to stand out in a music genre that is often overlooked.

The band started back on March 13, 2024, when Luke and drummer Kaden formed a two-piece band initially called Lethal Injection. “We thought Lethal Injection kinda sucked,” Luke admitted. After adding rhythm guitarist Isaac Garcia, they briefly rebranded as Iron Cross—another name they quickly scrapped. Eventually, inspiration came from one of the most legendary metal bands of all time—Slayer. “I was listening to this Slayer song called Unit 731, they mentioned the word Vivisection, which I thought sounded cool, so I searched up what it meant, and it means Surgery without anesthesia, and I said to myself, that’s gotta be the coolest name for a death metal band ever,” Luke recalled. That even gave birth to one of their songs, Philosophy of a Knife, which dives into the brutal Japanese military unit 731, in a way that matches the band’s aggressive musical style.

The band’s lineup was finalized in early December after a “test run” show at the Raven on December 27th. With bassist Cyvant joining officially, Vivisection was finally complete. “Cyvant is a great bassist,” Luke added. “We’re really happy with our decision.” Since then, the band has been polishing their sound, a mix of Isaac’s thrash influences and Luke’s death metal style, which still manages to retain the raw intensity every metalhead loves. 

Last summer, Vivisection were invited to perform in Oxford after another band discovered them through Instagram and TikTok. At the time, they had no original material written—but within six weeks, they composed their first full song. That experience set a pattern: Writing a completely new song before each show. “It pushed us creatively and forced us to grow faster than we ever imagined,” Luke said.

One of their most memorable shows took place recently at Hotel Vernon, sharing the stage with Ravager, Terminus, and Giftkreig. “The crowd was insane—people were moshing and chanting. That’s the standard we hold ourselves to now,” Luke noted.

Currently, Vivisection is in the final stages of completing their upcoming EP and preparing for recording. They plan to release two singles before dropping their full EP this summer.

With all members currently juniors, their immediate goal is to release a record before graduation, roughly a year and a half away. While ambitious, the band is committed, constantly getting better at what they do and learning from each performance.

Their next show is set for April 11 at Husky’s Pub, promising another intense, high-energy performance. For Vivisection, music is more than just notes and rhythms. “Music makes us who we are,” Isaac Garcia stated. And with every show, Vivisection is proving that the younger generation won’t let the metal scene die anytime soon.