Death Metal – Page 144 – Wonderbox Metal

Disloyal – Godless (Review)

Disloyal are a Death Metal band from Poland. This is their fourth album.

Disloyal have a sound that’s nice and thick with the guitars sounding hard enough to break bones.

The riffs are brutal and groovy with enough speed to run their victims down and completely bulldoze them into nothing.

The songs are well-written and have some unexpected elements of interest here and there; a good example appears early on in the first song – a brief addition of subtle and effective keyboards to create an epic atmosphere.

The vocals are deep, dark growls that have a lot of character for the style. With the impressive nature of the music a genre-standard growl would only be disappointing, so the fact that they have a singer who injects his deathgrunts with a bit of charisma is most welcome.

Well this is very good. Songs, heaviness, brutality and intelligent delivery. Top class.

Disloyal have managed to produce what is essentially a Brutal Death Metal album but with personality and some added enhancements that lift them well above the mediocre.

Very highly recommended.

The Grotesquery – Curse of the Skinless Bride (Review)

This is the third album by this Death Metal supergroup, featuring members and ex-members of Massacre, Death, Edge of Sanity, Mantas, Bone Gnawer, Paganizer, Ribspreader, Liklukt and This Haven.

First off, I want to acknowledge the album title – now that’s a Metal album title. Top work!

But anyway…onto the music. Here we have some Old-School Death Metal with plenty of groove and mid-paced heaviness. This is 90’s-style Death Metal from an era when songs still mattered and each track was thought of in a holistic manner.

As such, the songwriting here befits the music and the Metal flows nicely from track to track. Or interlude, as the case may be. This is a Horror-themed release so there are numerous interludes to progress the story.

The guitar riffs are appropriate to the style, of course, but the melodies and riffs chosen also seem to further the atmosphere as espoused by the narrative. The result is not just a trip down Death Metal memory lane but an immersive experience into the realms of Horror Metal.

Good sound, good Metal. Here’s to The Grotesquery.

Irreversible Mechanism – Infinite Fields (Review)

Hailing from Belarus, Irreversible Mechanism play Progressive/Technical Death Metal and this is their début album.

Here we have some super-sexy Technical Death Metal with equal parts Progressive and Modern Death Metal as well as elements of Melodic/Symphonic Death/Black Metal. If that sounds quite intimidating then don’t let it be; Irreversible Mechanism have the talent to bring it all together and make it work.

The band have a lot of technical ability and there’s no shortage of fretboard wizardry on display here.

Lots of solos and leads as well as time signature changes are included and although they are the norm for Technical Death Metal, here the Progressive elements of the band and their songwriting skills stop things from becoming overbearing in this regard.

Irreversible Mechanism may be ambitious with their songs, as well they should be, but they always remember that the needs of the song come first and it’s not just enough to string riffs together. Dynamics, pacing, energy and composition are all important and these songs are surprisingly memorable.

Heavy use is made of synthesizers to add extra layers of feelings to the tracks. Do you know what? It works. These sounds add to the overall atmosphere of the album and adds a strong melodic edge to the band’s assault.

Vocally the singer shifts between traditional growling and higher screams. The screams in particular are notable as, combined with the hyperspeed music and symphonic elements, they lend the music a Blackened edge on occasion.

Infinite Fields is a very impressive release. Kind of like a Technical Death Metal version of Dimmu Borgir; the grandeur and the violence.

Definitely be sure to check this out, you won’t be disappointed.

Apophys – Prime Incursion (Review)

This is the début album from Apophys. They are from the Netherlands and play Death Metal.

I enjoy an album that has no pointless intro and starts off as it means to go on – brutal and direct. It’s uncompromising, harsh, and just how I like my Death Metal in the morning.

This is professionally played Death Metal that knows a thing or two about the genre, (featuring members and ex-members of a whole slew of other bands), and sets out from the start to blast and batter you into the ground.

The riffs are dark and brutal and the drums form a constantly aggressive backdrop. It’s largely high-energy, high-hostility stuff, and you wouldn’t want to get caught standing in front of it when it’s at full speed.

There are some nicely melodic solos included which flow like liquid gold through the jaggedly brutal riffs of the rhythm guitars.

The style is predominantly a US-influenced one, (think Morbid Angel-esque), mixed with a bit of a modern groove for some additional flavour. It works a treat and the songs sit well on their throne of xenos skulls.

At just under 40 minutes in length this is an enjoyable and satisfying blast of Death Metal that should fill that need for violent carnage that I know you have deep down. Turn this up and watch everything around you wilt and die under Apophys’ relentless assault.

Invigorating.

Dawn of Azazel – The Tides of Damocles (Review)

Dawn of Azazel are from New Zealand and play Death Metal. This is their fourth album.

Dawn of Azazel play Progressive Death Metal with enough brutality to keep people happy.

They have a very satisfying production with the guitars sounding heavily distorted and full of fuzz. Combined with the blasting drums and vocals it’s a good solid sound.

The vocalist has a the kind of shouted growl that’s forceful and savage. His voice tears out of the music with fury.

Their music is a wonderful combination of the Progressive, Modern and Brutal Death Metal subgenres, so much so that there’s a lot on offer on The Tides of Damocles.

A multitude of inventive riffs and interesting ideas are tried and tested throughout these 10 songs. It’s an impressive melting pot that the band create and they forge it into a cohesive attack over the course of just over 48 minutes.

The guitars are a highlight for me as they lead the assault and you never quite know what they’re going to do next. That’s not to imply that they’re a hyper-chaotic Techdeath mess, far from it; it’s just that Dawn of Azazel pour so many different riffing styles into the mix that you might be listening to a Morbid Angel section at one point only to have it change into something Meshuggah-inspired, or maybe a riff Immolation would be proud of.

Ultimately though it all flows together quite naturally and The Tides of Damocles is a very striking record.

Yes, I look forward to listening to this more and more over the years and getting to know it really, really well. This one’s a keeper.

Vasomortus – Instrument Torture of Pyramid (Review)

This is the début album by Indonesian Death Metallers Vasomortus.

Vasomortus play Death Metal that’s raw and brutal. There’s no subtlety, nuance, niceness or any form of nod to anything progressive or forward thinking; this is relentlessly ugly, aggressive Death Metal. Vasomortus’ only concern is a murderous assault and how much damage they can do.

This takes me back to mid-90’s USDM and the album has a production to match. Everything about this band harks back to this time really and the brutality is completely authentic. For fans of Suffocation, Deeds of Flesh, Devourment, etc.

Blasting riffs, chugging heaviness and groovy carnage are the meat and potatoes of the band, so it’s time to tuck in and get your fill.

Eschewing any shades of colour in the form of solos or leads, and stripped of technicality, progressive elements, modern polish, etc. this is Death Metal that is utterly single minded in its intention. What we’re left with is Brutal Death Metal that only cares about brutality and death-dealing, nothing more.

Although this does leave Vasomortus sounding a bit one-dimensional compared to a lot of other Death Metal bands who may have more variety in their attack, it does mean that they are free to focus purely on what they do best – embodying underground brutality.

For times when only pure barbarity will do.

Six Feet Under – Crypt of the Devil (Review)

Six Feet Under are a Death Metal band from the US, although it’s highly likely that they need no introduction. This is their eleventh album.

This album is slightly different to previous releases as it’s somewhat of a collaboratively written effort between Six Feet Under main man Chris Barnes and Cannabis Corpse’s bassist/vocalist.

How has this changed things? At first glance not a lot, but on closer inspection there are some subtle alterations to Six Feet Under’s Death ‘n’ Groove style this time around.

Some of the riffs are a little more complicated, (just a little), there’s a little more aggression, a pinch of extra speed and a little more fun. Not fun in the ridiculous, novelty way, but fun in the Autopsy-covered-in-bowels style of macabre fun. You know, graveyard fun.

Also, some of the riffs just have a bit more Metal to them, Death-style almost. Not all, but it’s noticeable in places.

These ten tracks are catchy and laden with enough barbed hooks to stick into anything. The songs continue to batter and bruise their way through the running time with all of the finesse of a wrecking ball, of course. But would we want it any other way? No way.

Ultimately Six Feet Under are the kind of band you either take to or don’t. Of course you can realistically say that about any band, but Six Feet Under certainly do seem to be one of those groups that people either love or hate.

I think that Crypt of the Devil will do very little to convince those who have already decided they don’t like the band. For those of us who are fans though, it’s similar enough to the normal Six Feet Under output to sound reassuringly familiar; however the small but important alterations to their sound due to the collaborative songwriting mean that they come across fresher and hungrier than ever.

After two decades of Death Metal Six Feet Under are still going strong. Crypt of the Devil is yet another solid slab of mid-paced Death Metal that’s meaty enough to satisfy that craving for rotten, putrid flesh that I know you all crave.

Turn the volume up and get ready to bang your head once more.

Demonical – Black Flesh Redemption (Review)

Demonical are from Sweden and this is their latest EP. They play Death Metal.

I’ve always got time for a bit of Swedish Death Metal, and this latest EP by Demonical serves as a suitable ambassador of the style for anyone who’s unlucky enough to be unfamiliar with it.

That Swedish chainsaw presence is accounted for, as are the dark melodies and heavy grooves that so endear the style to so many.

Demonical do this proud sub-genre justice and these four songs are exemplars of the style.

The riffs are superb and everything is heavier than Hell. The drums crash like explosions and the vocals are so deeply satisfying it’s a joy to hear.

Each track here is very well-written and really hits the spot. Swedish Death Metal gets by on songs, rather than speed/brutality/extremity/technicality/etc. just for the sake of it, and these songs are tight, precise, very heavy and instantly appealing.

Swedish Death Metal has its detractors of course, and as such not everyone will be as gushing about this as me. The thing is though, even if you have had your fill of the style, I fail to see how this can’t relight the passion you must surely have felt at one point for it. I mean, deep down, everyone likes this kind of stuff really, I know they do. What’s not to like?

But I digress. I’ve not encountered Demonical before, but based on Black Flesh Redemption it seems like this has been a crying shame as this EP is really damn good.

At only 17 minutes in length and containing more quality Death Metal than most bands manage in twice that, this is an EP that you must add to your collection.

A firm essential purchase for all Swedish Death Metal fans. For all Death Metal fans, in fact.

Gruesome – Savage Land (Review)

This is the début album by US Death Metal band Gruesome.

This is a supergroup of sorts, featuring members of Exhumed, Possessed, Malevolent Creation and Derketa. Gruesome exist purely to pay homage to Old-School Floridian Death Metal, with specific reference to the early work of Death.

It’s clear from the very start that they have everything in place to achieve this.

The sound is an authentic Morrisound one, only polished up a bit and without actually being recorded there.

The music is straight out of the Old-School Death handbook, complete with galloping drums, sharp riffs and leads/solos aplenty.

Savage Land excels in the songs though; without good songs this album would fall flat as being rather pointless. Thankfully though, listening to all of those Death Metal albums from an early age has done wonders for the band and this is a really enjoyable album that almost seems to reanimate the corpse of Death, if only for a little while.

In fact the spirit of Death is felt strongly throughout these 36 minutes. It seems to be lurking wherever you look, the riffs, the drums, the solos, the vocals, the choruses, everything really; deeply infused into the songs.

In another band this might be seen as a bad thing, but in Gruesome it’s so honest, so pure, so well-realised that Savage Land just comes off as a triumph.

Turn the volume up and give this a listen. If you’ve ever been a fan of early Death then I defy you not to enjoy this.

Ataxia – Calignious (Review)

Ataxia are a Canadian Death Metal band and this is their début album.

This is sharp Death Metal with a technical twist.

The band have a well-produced sound that’s tight and focused. Good musicianship means that the band know how to widdle and lots of technical muscles are flexed.

The singer has a decent growl that seems to come straight from the depths of somewhere dark and evil.

Ataxia are a band who are trying to do something slightly different with the Death Metal template. Yes, to the untrained eye this is essentially Death Metal, but to the connoisseur of such things Ataxia have enough of their own personality and ideas that are manifested in Calignious to cause you to sit up and take notice.

The band seem to prefer to embed their technicality into the very brutal essence of the songs as a general rule, as there are surprisingly few solos or leads on this release. Most of the time the complicated fretwork makes up the bulwark of the rhythms and snakes around the blasting drums.

This is brutal, Technical Death Metal which takes its cues from the experimental sides of Atheist and Death as much as Cannibal Corpse and Suffocation.

I think it’s time to support the Metal underground once more and lay your hands on this.