This is the latest EP from Faustian Dripfeed, a Norwegian melodic death metal band.
Having enjoyed the band’s debut EP Between This and Death, it’s great to catch up with Faustian Dripfeed once more for this new EP.
Faustian Escapades offers three songs lasting 12 minutes in total. As the genre tag would lead you to believe, this is death metal with melodic bite. Heavier and more aggressive than many ostensibly similar strains of melodic death metal, it’s clear that Faustian Dripfeed are a band that like their metal meaty and forceful.
Opening up with a strong sound and plenty of thick guitars, Tom Cruise on a Rainy Day comes across a mix of Illdisposed and Cannibal Corpse. It’s a strong start to the EP that allows the band to set their cards on the table and get right down to business. I like a piece of music with a good riff and plenty of crunch, and this is one such song. The melodic accoutrements are simply the icing on the cake.
Headless Body in Topless Bar follows next, giving the listener some blast beats to sink their teeth into. The singer’s inhuman deathgrowls are joined by some high-pitched screams, while the chunky riffs get some nice solos to play with. There’s a brief, pleasant, atmospheric break in the middle that reminds me of something In Flames might do, before continuing with the heaviness once more.
The EP ends with Paranoia Erotica, which is also the longest song on this release. Brutal and aggressive, and with some nice bass-work, this is probably the most dynamic sounding song here. Powered by a gratifying mid-paced beefy Vader riff for a while, the song then boasts a strong melodic lead which is quite enticing. There’s no holding the brutal vocals back though, so no matter what the music is doing, the singer sounds like he is trying to regurgitate his spleen the entire time. Like the other tracks on this EP, Paranoia Erotica is a well-written, muscular slab of metal. It’s probably my favourite of the three actually, as some of the guitar melodies are really quite tasty.
This is another strong release from this very promising band. Give this a listen and get ready to bang your head.
Wonderbox Metal 