This is the fourth album from US death metal band Horrendous.
Horrendous are a notable and important band in the death metal underground, I’d posit. As evidence I’d cite albums such as Ecdysis and Anareta, at the very least. Continue reading “Horrendous – Idol (Review)”
Horrendous are a US Death Metal band and this is their third album.
Playing Old-School/Traditional Death Metal, this is the follow-up to 2014’s impressive Ecdysis.
Following on from this previous release, Horrendous continue to offer a well-rounded Death Metal package, full of interesting riffs, decent melodies, intricate solos and actual well-thought-out songs.
Their approach to the material is refreshing, even given the Old-School nature of the music; it’s recognisable as instantly Old-School Death Metal but it doesn’t sound dated at all. Horrendous are one of the few bands that play this style who are trying to move it forwards rather than just wallowing in what was released decades ago.
There’s something deeply satisfying about this music. It demonstrates a band who are able to compose songs that have a lot of depth and atmosphere without ever devolving into filler-esque extremity or retro-parody. Horrendous have well and truly stamped their own personality and vision on a well-worn style.
Once again, the recording is warm and seems to pulsate with life. One of the things I enjoyed on Ecdysis was that you could hear the bass and on Anareta this is still the case.
The singer’s voice is still a pleasing mix of Obituary/Morbid Angel and he spends his time on Anareta providing a compelling focal point for the music.
On this latest album Horrendous demonstrate why they are quite rightly lauded as one of the best when it comes to this type of Death Metal. As much as I enjoyed Ecdysis I think on this latest album they’ve upped their game even more.
Impressive and essential.
This is the second album from US Death Metal band Horrendous.
Firstly; what an album cover! Top marks for that for a start.
But what of the music? Horrendous play Traditional/Old-School Death Metal with a good bit of the Swedish style chucked in, although they are certainly not limited to this one particular subgenre. Their style is a wider one that encompasses pretty much all of the Classic/Traditional/Old-School Death Metal sounds and delivers them wrapped in entrails as a horrendous, (heh), package of delights for the listener to chew on.
Good riffs and good melodies are apparent from the off; this is band that knows how to rip your face off but also knows how to show restraint and take the slower, more considered route to its slaughter. Some of the guitar leads and solos on this release are sublime, enough to take your breath away. There really are some impressive moments here.
A warm, organic sound means you can almost feel the breathing of the Metal as it clobbers you to death. Even the bass is audible. The guitars have a bit of That Swedish Sound, but not oppressively so. Instead the whole thing has a Classic Death Metal stomp.
The vocalist falls somewhere between an Obituary and a Covenant-era Morbid Angel style. He has a relatively varied voice as he ranges deeper or higher than his core voice as necessary.
The songs chug and churn, flatten and demolish their way through the 44 minutes playing time with the confidence of a killer and the talent of a professional. These are diverse and dynamic songs with strong songwriting clearly stamped all over them in a big, bloody mess.
This is an album that every fan of Death Metal should get their greasy mitts on. Play loud and play repeatedly.
Wonderbox Metal 