Lik are a Swedish death metal band and this is their fourth album.
Following on from 2018’s Carnage and 2020’s Misanthropic Breed comes another slab of Swedish death metal carnage from the ever-dependable Lik. Necro is a solid 41-minute slab of heaviness.
I have a soft spot for Swedeath, although it’s definitely one that’s hardened over the years. Certain bands simply have that enjoyable something extra though, tenderising it all over again with chainsaw riffs and punishing grooves; Lik are one of the few that still manage to do this. (My only minor concern for the future is that so far, every subsequent Lik album has been creeping up in its duration. I mean, Necro is barely over 40 minutes, so it’s not a huge complaint, but this is a style best consumed in smaller chunks. As I say though, a very minor issue in the grand scheme of things, especially as Necro is such a good album to listen to).
When done well, old-school Swedish death metal songs are simply buckets of bloody fun, and Lik have loads of the damn things. It’s all heavy songs with barbed hooks, macabre melodies, and gruesome growls. What’s not to like?
Necro is such a classic Swedish death metal album. It brings together all of the right component parts and smashes them together into a rotting death metal corpse. Throw together bits of Dismember, Entombed, Bloodbath, and At the Gates, and you have Lik standing proudly over their creation.
The songs are well-written and full of hooks. Necro boasts more speeds and diversity of delivery, (within the obvious stylistic framework), than many albums of this nature, which is one the reasons it works so well. From slower crushing heaviness to lethal blast beats, Lik kick out the gory jams like nobody’s business. Notably, Lik sound waaaay more energetic and fresh than many still playing in this subgenre. Remarkably so, really.
Melodic, catchy, heavy. I like what Lik are selling very much. Necro is an album that’s very easy to enjoy. This is a masterclass in classic Swedish death metal. Of course, if you’re sick of the style, or never cared for it, this likely won’t change your mind too much despite how high quality it is. However, if this is a style you favour, then you just must sink your teeth into this tasty treat.
Wonderbox Metal 