Deathcore – Page 18 – Wonderbox Metal

Carnifex – Slow Death (Review)

This is the sixth album from Carnifex, a US death metal band.

Carnifex play modern/melodic death metal with elements of deathcore and added orchestration.

I’m not overly familiar with Carnifex, having only listened to one of their previous albums – their 2008 release The Diseased and the Poisoned; this was an okay album, but nothing particularly special, so I was not prepared at all for how far they’ve come in the last 8 years. Slow Death is light years ahead of that release, so much so it’s almost like listening to Continue reading “Carnifex – Slow Death (Review)”

Eradikal Insane – Mithra (Review)

Eradikal Insane are a French death metal band and this is their debut album.

Eradikal Insane play modern death metal that’s high-impact and straight to the point.

The band vary the speeds that they operate in, but always go full-on regardless of what they do. The fast parts are very fast, the mid-paced grooves are generously dense and the breakdown-styled sections are heavy and crushing. Continue reading “Eradikal Insane – Mithra (Review)”

Necroptic Engorgement – Realms of Incessant Bloodshed (Review)

Necroptic Engorgement are a death metal band from the US. This is their latest EP.

This is brutal death metal with a touch of deathgrind added for extra flavour.

Vocals are either high pitched screeches or deep, guttural growl-barks that sometimes sound unusually legible, but always sound unusually evil. Continue reading “Necroptic Engorgement – Realms of Incessant Bloodshed (Review)”

Lord of War – Suffer (Review)

This is the second album from Lord of War, a US death metal band.

On Suffer, Lord of War deliver 49 minutes of well-recorded modern death metal with enough strength and power to floor an elephant.

This is the kind of thing that should appeal to any of the death metal new guard, so fans of Whitechapel, Thy Art Is Murder, All Shall Perish, Molotov Solution, (the singer of which has a guest spot on this album), etc., Continue reading “Lord of War – Suffer (Review)”

Whitechapel – Mark of the Blade (Review)

Whitechapel are from the US and play deathcore/metal. This is their sixth album.

2014’s Our Endless War saw Whitechapel effectively combining their death metal/deathcore roots with their more further-developed modern metal approach from their previous release into an album that made the most out of both of these influences.

Mark of the Blade continues where Our Endless War left off, providing a large chunk of heavy, aggressive music with modern, groove and djent parts welded onto their thoroughly metal core. However, the band have also progressed and expanded Continue reading “Whitechapel – Mark of the Blade (Review)”

Omnicide – Constants and Variables (Review)

This is the second album from this Swiss death metal band.

This is 34 minutes of modern death metal that effectively combines speed and groove.

Cannibal Corpse-esque riffs mix with elements of deathcore and bands like The Kennedy Veil and Origin, as well as sprinklings of thrash metal here and there. The resultant music sounds like none of the above bands too much, although you can hear where their influences come from. That the band can clearly acknowledge Continue reading “Omnicide – Constants and Variables (Review)”

Omophagia – In the Name of Chaos (Review)

Omophagia are a Death Metal band from Switzerland and this is their second album.

Playing a brutal and precise version of Death Metal, Omophagia know how to pen a good riff and a memorable song.

Alongside the speed and brutality there’s also some nice technical aspects to the songs as the band know their instruments well.

Included also are some very enjoyable solos and leads, and the band aren’t afraid of including some melody here and there. There’s a militaristic, impersonal feel to some of the heavy riffs which is deftly counteracted by the colour and warmth that the solos, leads and slices of melody provide.

These songs are well-composed and the band show a keen awareness for structure and pace. I like that they know how to use the rhythm guitars to great effect, always making sure to inject them with energy and rhythmic memorability. Rather than peeling off throwaway filler riffs, it feels as if the different parts of these songs have been thought over in detail. Combined with the mechanistic and relentlessly pounding drums that track with the guitars, it makes for an effective and efficient rhythm section.

The vocalist has a rapid-fire voice that barks out deep growls in a clipped, decisive manner. His voice is very satisfying and alongside the well-recorded music these songs hit the spot quite nicely.

Omophagia have the full package, and In the Name of Chaos is one of the more fully-rounded Death Metal releases I’ve heard of late.

Very highly recommended.

Whitechapel – Our Endless War (Review)

This is the fifth album from US Deathcore/Metal band Whitechapel.

Whitechapel have progressed over the years from their more Death Metal/Deathcore roots to something these days that is half Deathcore and half modern Metal, taking influence from the NWOAHM and djent styles and infusing them with a Deathcore aggression and heaviness.

They’ve generally slowed things down a bit too, emphasising catchiness and rhythm rather than speed and brutality, as was once the case, (although even back then they had a certain level of catchiness that was lacking in their peers). Due to their background though they’re more than capable of speeding up when they need to, adding that extra edge to the delivery, and I’m pleased that the blast beats haven’t been totally dropped from their repertoire.

As mentioned above, there’s more of a djent influence on their albums of late, and this is still true on Our Endless War. I’ve stated in the past that djent is a very easy style to be mediocre at, and I’ve said the same about Deathcore too; it’s a testament to Whitechapel’s ability that they take the strengths from one and use it to offset the weaknesses of the other. The result is music that blurs the line between both, taking the best aspects and combining them with the aforementioned NWOAHM parts to create memorable songs that pound and smash their way through the playing time.

Although Whitechapel are mainly about the chunky grooves and heavy riffs, the included melodies and leads should not be discounted or dismissed. These frequently provide a more emotive hook for the listener and add a lot to the songs in comparison to the more obvious rhythm guitars. This side of the band also serves to remind that when they’re not unleashing huge breakdowns and the like, Whitechapel can really play.

The singer’s clipped growls are still deep and roaring, and he shows a nice rhythmic awareness a lot of the time that fits in well with what the music is doing. Occasionally he slips into the even deeper deathgrowls of old, and it’s a joy to hear.

For me, this album is definitely a grower. For all of the immediacy of a band like this, it takes time for the rhythms and melodies to properly infiltrate your brain. When they do you’ll find that the band have produced a surprisingly memorable and enjoyable album.

Highly recommended.

Corprophemia – Abhorrogenesis (Review)

This is the second album from Canadian Death Metal band Corprophemia.

Playing savage Death Metal that has elements of the brutal and technical styles, this is a modern approach to the genre that injects a bit of Deathcore and slam into the mix to further increase the violence factor.

Canada seems to be very good when it comes to this kind of thing. Fellow Canadian Death Metallers such as Cryptopsy, Deformatory, Pronostic, Antlion and Unbreakable Hatred to name but a few have all released some top quality music in the not too distant past and we can now add Corprophemia to that list as well.

The singer has a fine set of lungs it seems, with his clipped barks reeking of aggression. His is a very satisfying voice and perfectly complements the precise and exacting nature of the music.

So what of the music? It’s well-played, well-written and well-recorded. This pretty much covers all of the bases and all that remains is for this to be played at full volume to annoy the neighbours.

The band use crushing rhythmic riffs well and mainly sound like a combination of the dynamics and technicality of Cryptopsy, the staccato brutality of Beneath the Massacre and the sheer violence and cold assault of Coprocephalic. Add some snippets of cut-short melody here and there and brief ambient synth interludes between tracks and you have a very compelling 30 minutes.

Highly recommended.

Within Destruction – Void (Review)

This is the second album from this Slovenian Death Metal band.

Blast beats, huge groovy riffs and crushing beatdowns, this is what we like. Within Destruction play modern Death Metal with a side order of Deathcore, taking in all stops on the brutality train as they pummel and carve their way through the opposition.

The vocalist appears to have eaten all of the souls and spends the album trying to vomit them up in new and disgusting ways. His deep growls are a pleasure to listen to and work perfectly with the blasting mayhem and destructive beats.

With fast aggression and a decent compromise between simplicity and technicality, Void is a relentless and unrepentant series of kicks to the head.

The songs are energetic and the Deathcore influence means that it’s easy to find yourself bouncing along as the tracks progress. As you do. Importantly, (and this is where most pure Deathcore bands fail), they don’t rely totally on this approach and also include some proper Death Metal brutality, some technical riffage and even understated atmospheric melodies. The end result is songs that may have style, but also have some substance to them too; very important.

Ahhh, it’s so nice to hear this kind of stuff. It’s so easy to be jaded and cynical these days, but when you hear something like this, played with real passion and a lust for all things sickeningly heavy and brutal, you can’t help but get swept away with it. Also; huge monster on the cover. What’s not to like?

Highly recommended.

For fans of Analepsy, Thy Art Is Murder, Infant Annihilator, Beneath the Massacre, Acrania, Aborted, etc.