Death Metal – Page 169 – Wonderbox Metal

Frozen Hell – Rise! (Review)

Italian band Frozen Hell play Melodic Death Metal and this is their first release.

This EP is of the Gothenburg, early In Flames-style of Melodic Death Metal and the band play tribute to this era with six tracks of Old-School melodicism.

The vocals have some bite and are performed well, with deeper and not so deep raspings and growls; it’s good.

Recording-wise the vocals and drums have really nice organic sound to them that’s very pleasing to the ear. The guitars and bass however sound slightly muted and could really do with some extra punch to bring them to life.

Also included as a seventh track is an Amon Amarth cover The Pursuit of Death, which is a medley combining The Pursuit of Vikings and Death in Fire.

Not too bad for a début release; if they can come back with a full album with a better production and a bit more refined songsmithing then they could be on to something.

Wormed – Exodromos (Review)

Wormed are from Spain and play science/future-themed Brutal/Technical Death Metal.

Tight, muscular songs fly by in a haze of technical wizardry with so much going on it’s hardly possible to digest everything in one sitting. The album positively demands repeated listens, and rightfully deserves them too.

This level of extremity is extremely impressive. Especially so when wrapped up in a state-of-the-art, crystal-clear production that makes the most out of every instrument with a sound so sharp you could cut yourself on it.

It’s not all about the technicality though, there’s a massive injection of pure brutality to go along with it. Wormed have managed to pitch both types of Death Metal against each other and come out a winner on both sides.

The songs are generally relatively short with most of them being about the 3:00-3:30 mark, but there is a lot going on and the band don’t need longer to make their mark.

The maniacal drumming, guttural pig-noise vocals, breakneck inventive riffing and massive chugging atrocities all combine to create an experience not easily forgotten. Like a thunderclap given form and mangled into an intricate design that rushes towards you at the speed of sound; you’ll wonder what the hell just happened but be more than eager to repeat the experience. This is an album I’ll be joyfully assimilating for some time.

Gigan – Multi-Dimensional Fractal-Sorcery And Super Science (Review)

So you fancy some futuristic Progressive Technical Death Metal do you? Well look no further than US band Gigan as they have what you’re looking for!

This is no easy listening though; it requires repeated spins to truly absorb what is going on here. And even then there is still more to discover.

This may be touted as Technical Death Metal, and it is as far as descriptors go; but it’s not your average Tech Death that’s for sure.

Riffs wash over you like a sea of cosmic rays and thousands of quantum fluctuations assault your senses in forbidden mathematical equations. In a way the cover is all you need to know about this release as it captures the essence of the album very well, if not the raw visceral chaos of the songs themselves.

The tracks are lengthy and involved, and the production is dense and gritty; the nuances are plentiful and easy to overlook on first listen. There is simply so much content in every minute that it can be hard to know which part to focus on. Never let it be said that Gigan aren’t giving enough.

This is interesting and innovative in the way that only ground-breakers and rule-smashers can be. On a bumpy, mind-numbing journey through outer space, I can’t think of any better guide than Gigan.

Multi-Dimensional Fractal-Sorcery And Super Science can be befuddling and unapproachable; but those who persevere will be rewarded. Great stuff.

Morfin – Inoculation (Review)

Morfin are from the US and play straight-up classic Death Metal.

We get 10 tracks, including a Death cover; which should give you a good idea of where Morfin’s loyalties lie in the Death Metal hierarchy. In fact if you like Death, (and who doesn’t?), then you should like this also.

From the album cover to the album production this screams Old-School at the top of its diseased lungs and then falls to the floor to devour a fresh corpse once it has done so.

Somehow Morfin appear to have captured and bottled early Death Metal and are swigging liberally from it regularly. Rather than sounding derivative, tired and old though it somehow has a rejuvenating effect and this sounds as fresh as it did back in the day. Morfin may have a bit of Death hero-worship going on but when they have the formula this right who cares?

Importantly it’s not just the feel and style of the album that they have the secret ingredient for, but they also have the songs to back it all up. The tracks rumble away one after another and before you know it all 45 minutes have expired and you’re sitting there with a rictus grin on your face wondering where you got the blood on your hands from.

So join me now; shout it loud and proud – MORFIN!!!

Defeated Sanity – Passages Into Deformity (Review)

Germany’s Defeated Sanity serve up their fourth full-length platter of Brutal Technical Death Metal with Passages Into Deformity.

This is a case study in brutality from the get-go. First track Initiation – from the title and the fact it’s only 1:15 long I was led to assume it would be some typically disposable intro that so many bands have, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. It is, essentially, a Deathgrind song and it’s a great way to start things off.

Defeated Sanity play the technical and brutal sides of Death Metal very well, and I especially enjoy the Cryptopsy-esque drum/bass moments, fancy breaks and general riff-chuggery. The Jazz-Death is strong with this one.

The vocalist does a great job gargling with broken glass, and I hope he’s recovered from the blood loss of creating such guttural sounds.

They have a good clear production that allows you to actually hear the bass, (which they make ample use of), and the drumming is an exercise in flawless precision. The two instruments work together to form an integral and essential part of the songs and are every bit as important as the thickened guitars and the bestial grunts.

A top-quality release from a band who have enough experience and know-how to excel at what they’re doing.

Embryonic Devourment – Reptilian Agenda (Review)

Brutal and Technical Death Metal from the US.

Oh but this is a quality blast. Reptilian Agenda is interesting and inventive Death Metal, with all kinds of rhythms and creative moments. The songs are alive with reptilian malice and slithering slime.

The band have plenty of technique and their delivery is flawless. It’s instantly apparent that this is not run-of-the-mill Death Metal and as the album progresses this is confirmed in every song. Like Origin and Cephalic Carnage trading blows; riffs chop and change, twist and turn, only to be devoured by some sudden flare up of technicality and then vomited back up in a hail of brutality. The songs just kill everything in sight.

The vocals are uncompromising growls that also have a wet, fleshy feel to them. The verbalisations of a warm, (reptilian), corpse?

The sound does the music justice and the drums in particular sound immense and provide the glue that holds everything together, even though they appear to be inhabiting a different world to the hugely impressive guitars sometimes, it all holds together.

31 minutes of interesting and spirited brutal music. What are you waiting for?

Soreption – Engineering The Void (Review)

This is the second album from Sweden’s Technical Death Metal wizards Soreption.

With a sound so sharp and crisp you could stab people with it, Engineering The Void erupts from the speakers like a geyser of technicality and blastbeats. This is Tech Death of the highest order.

Soreption play things ultra-precise and fast, and aren’t afraid to introduce new or novel ideas to their songs to make things even more interesting. They also know when to hold back and make the most out of a sexy riff, such as in Utopia.

I enjoy Technical Death Metal a lot when it’s done well. The problem sometimes is that the songs can get lost in all of the blurry speed and mayhem and it can therefore be easy to lose interest. Soreption don’t suffer from this though and the interest is held throughout this superlative release. It should be noted that this doesn’t mean the band play catchy songs; they don’t. The songs have form and substance and are merely composed of technicality and focused precision rather than being ruled and overpowered by them as can sometimes be the case with this style of Metal.

The singer can sometimes be overlooked in favour of the extreme technicality in these kind of bands, so I feel compelled to mention that the vocalist’s output matches the high performance levels of the rest of the group. He has a really strong voice which he uses to great effect, barking out savagery in a crisp, precise way; keeping in with the style of the album.

This is mechanically tight and flawlessly delivered. Technical Death Metal is not everyone’s favourite type of music but if you are partial to a bit of this then Soreption do it better than most. This has real longevity baked into it and is a great listen. Give them a try.

Asylum – Inmate (Review)

Indian Metal band Asylum have released Inmate, a five track EP containing 21 minutes of music.

Thrashy groove-heavy Death Metal is essentially Asylum’s choice of assault, and they do this well. Sounding akin to a modern Thrash band only with harsher vocals and more of a bouncy Death Metal feel to the riffs. Some guitar solos even raise their heads; always welcome.

The singer has a top-quality voice. Deep but defined and clear. It works well with the crisp music the band play.

The songs are enjoyable enough and bounce along with glee. Mid-paced Death Metal that has plenty of rhythm always puts me in mind of Grave, no matter what. Even here where there are few similarities between the bands, (Asylum certainly don’t have that Swedish sound and they’re more New-School, than Old-), Grave can’t help but enter my thoughts. A slightly irrelevant aside of course, but sometimes it’s good to veer off-topic slightly.

Anyway – back to the band at hand. I enjoyed this EP and if they can keep this up and refine their sound even further the band will do well. Check them out.

Agiel – Dark Pantheons (Review)

Hailing from the US, Agiel play furious Symphonic Death Metal.

This 5 track EP is a calling card of beauty and brutality combined. A velvet-covered iron-fist smash to the face.

The songs are fast and interesting, with the strings and effects creating quite an exciting atmosphere on top of the underlying blasting.

This is how Death Metal would sound if it ever scored a film soundtrack. Bombastic and epic, while remaining utterly bestial and deranged; at times it can almost sound overbearing, like two disparate musical worlds colliding, or two songs being played at the same time. This description does it a disservice however, as the tracks are coherent enough to be enjoyable and overall this works and is done well.

This is quite an exciting and inspired release, as few Death Metal bands have combined this level of orchestration with such a pure Brutal Death Metal core, and it’s genuinely thrilling to hear.

A very worthwhile listen, and promises much to come for the the next full length.

Megascavenger – At the Plateaus of Leng (Review)

The latest Megascavenger album, (a project of Rogga Johansson), contains quite the list of guest vocalists – just have a look at the line up, (taken from the promo blurb) –

1. At The Plateaus Of Leng (Vocals by DAVE INGRAM of Bolt Thrower/Benediction)

2. The Festered Earth (Vocals by KAM LEE of Massacre)

3. And Then The Death Sets In (Vocals by AAD KLOOSTERWAARD of Sinister)

4. The Mucus Man (Vocals by MARTIN VAN DRUNEN of Asphyx/Hail of Bullets)

5. Like Comets Burn The Ether (Vocals by DAVE ROTTEN of Avulsed)

6. When Death Kills The Silence (Vocals by FELIX STASS of Crematory)

7. The Hand Of Bereavment (Vocals by ILKKA JARVENPÄÄ of National Napalm Syndicate)

8. Back To The Ancient (Vocals by BRYNJAR HELGETUN of Crypticus)

9. Night Of The Grand Obscenity (Vocals by ROGGA JOHANSSON)

If that’s not enough to get expectations running high I don’t know what is.

This album is full of melodic Old-School Death Metal goodness, but also a few unexpected turns such as the clean vocals/keyboard side of The Festered Earth, or the cleans of The Hand of Bereavement. Variety is a good thing however and these little flourishes and touches just enhance the album as a whole.

At the Plateaus of Leng is crushing and without mercy, stomping and stamping on all who oppose. But more than brutality these songs are surprisingly melodic and succeed well in hooking the listener. The tracks march along easily enough, propelled by the mid-paced barrage of the drums and carried aloft by the tuneful guitars. Each song is well-written, being identifiable from the last and not just because of the different vocals. This is an album of songs rather than just a collection of tracks, and there are catchy moments in great supply.

All of the vocalists do a sterling job and add their own personality and character into each of the compositions. Each song may have a different vocalist but the album flows nicely and doesn’t sound disjointed or like a compilation album, even when they veer into more Heavy Metal territory with clean singing it still holds together well as a package.

A very accomplished release, chock full of classic Death Metal songs, each one as enjoyable as the last.