Embryonic Devourment- Heresy of the Highest Order Review

 

Embryonic Devourment bring some super technical brutal death metal that bounces all over the place yet somehow manages to stay cohesive whilst only hanging on by the slightest thread. The guitar playing here is pure insanity honestly, and the bass mostly follows suit in terms of bringing the mayhem along with it. Dissonant, jumbled, fret fondling is here in spades. A good portion of this album is a fairly disorienting experience. The track "Heresy of the Highest Order" is the highlight for me. The track features some straight up amazing soloing. It also has some extremely straightforward old school heavy metal style riffing that manages to fit in perfectly among the dissonant passages that surround it.

Admittedly there are some sections of this album that go overboard with the wankery for my taste. These moments can become tiresome and honestly if the moments of greatness didn't click so hard with me I probably wouldn't return to it. The severely slowed, lurking vibes emanating from "Murder of the Ancients" are another standout that make those tiresome moments not so bothersome. I really feel like with a little bit of time at the drawing board these guys could become something really special. It's obvious from the moments of pure wankery that they're extremely skilled. The highlights here also show that they carry the ability to write some very interesting songs and passages that are nothing short of perfect. Hopefully in the future they'll offer something just a tad dialed back chock full of moments similar to the chunks on this one that shine through the jangly strings of notes.

Overall Heresy of the Highest Order is a fun frenzy of scatter brained death metal. It's chalk full of interesting twists and turns and managed to keep me on edge throughout the runtime. If you enjoy yourself some intensely note heavy guitar playing there's plenty of sections here to please the ear. JAM IT!!!

Void Column - Admonition of Clarity Review

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Void Column are a death/doom band coming out of Quebec, Canada. The band have a few demos under their belt and have come again with an EP featuring 16 minutes of murky, doomy debauchery. Masters in the art of guitar based hypnotism, Admonition of Clarity proves to be a killer time that will leave you confused and quacking like a Lovecraftian chicken.

The thing that jumps out automatically is the insanely thick, bogged out guitar tone. The presence of nastiness is profound to say the least. These guys dish out some wicked grooves. The one that demolishes the close of opener "Mortal Damnation" is quite a doozy. "Pillars of Nothingness" sinks it's claws into you with a stupidly catchy, hypnotic riff. "Thanatophobia" gives a nice little synth interlude also, as if the superb riffage wasn't enough to keep things interesting. The content here is fairly primitive but it appeals to the needs of my lizard brain that craves little else aside from some knuckle dragging fun.

Overall Admonition of Clarity leaves quite the impact despite it's extremely short runtime. 16 minutes was not nearly enough to satisfy my hunger for the goods that Void Column dish out. Those who like their death metal gross and spooky will be pleased with this one. It's become clear over the past few years that anyone playing extreme metal with the word "Void" anywhere near their name are more than likely going to slay you in some beautifully grotesque fashion. This is definitely a band to keep an eye on for whenever they concoct a gooey full length for the masses. There's no doubt in my mind that whenever it comes it will be strong because I could easily see myself jamming something three times this length from them and enjoying every minute of it. JAM IT DAMMIT!

Abolishment of Flesh- In the Presence of Darkness

 

Abolishment of Flesh is a death metal band from Texas. The band's first full length under the name Abolishment was much more of a relentlessly brutal affair but they've slowly dialed it back and gotten more into incorporating melody into the fold. Their past dabblings in more brutal territory give this album an interesting flair in it's approach, culminating into a pretty satisfying melting pot of death metal diversity. Some melodic tendencies, an old school semi technical leaning, and tastes of that nasty Texan brutality make for an interesting blend when all wrapped into one package. 

The guitar playing on this album is magnificent. There's plenty of moments scattered throughout featuring breathtaking leads and every solo is masterfully crafted to fit the riffs and grooves that surround them. The songwriting here displays a great deal of talent when it comes to creating beautiful melodies that blend effortlessly with the rhythmic attacks that they bounce back and forth with. The opening track starts right in with this approach which leads into a nice little clean break before transitioning to a pummeling groove that hits the spot. Early on Abolishment is dishing out some stuff that reminds me of mid era Death and that is certainly not a bad thing. 

The track "Behind Deceitful Eyes" uses vocal layering to great effect. Vocally this album is actually fairly diverse. The main approach is a standard growl with some screams mixed in. The layering is used sporadically and there's also some shrieks here and there. The title track has some unexpected cleans thrown in and surprisingly they work quite well and actually pop up on what I would consider a standout track on the album. The aforementioned layering really creates a nice, menacing tone throughout the duration of the record and adds some bite to many moments without going overboard with it. 

When "Self Righteous Regurgitation" hits with it's slam inducing opening riff the album kicks into high gear. Everything becomes a bit more sharp and dangerous for a bit moving forward. Regardless of the level of hostility Abolishment is working at the solos never fail to be masterfully crafted. The title track kicks off with some awesome tapping that paints the picture of one tumbling into a bottomless pit where some beast awaits. An epic simplistic groove follows that allows the events to play out. 

Overall In the Presence of Darkness is a pretty damn solid display of death metal goodies. These guys dish out a nice little smorgasbord of death metal variety proficiently. They nail the Death worship early on and weave in their earlier brutal death metal influences in a cohesive way that really works. Their previous albums were solid in terms of songwriting but the production typically left something to be desired. With this latest effort the murkiness that brought them down in the past has been cleared up. There's enough diversity here that the album should appeal to most death metal fans regardless of their preference when it comes to the details. It also closes out with an absolutely sick cover of a Sepultura classic. JAM IT!!!

Afterbirth- Four Dimensional Flesh

Afterbirth is a brutal death metal band from New York making strides to add new layers to the genre. The band released one 4 track demo back in 1994 only to vanish into obscurity shortly after. After a long hiatus they reformed and dropped another demo back in 2014 and followed it up with a well received album in 2017. The year is 2020 and Afterbirth make their triumphant return with Four Dimensional Flesh. Don't let the band name fool you, these guys are playing some brutal death metal but it is far from a run of the mill, dime a dozen releases that seemingly drop everyday. Four Dimensional Flesh while still bringing the brutality, almost feels like a journey of sorts.

"Rooms to Nowhere" is my personal favorite from the album, although I will say it is very hard to pick just one. The strange guitar part towards the mid-section of the track has been forever embedded in my memory since first listen. There's little moments like this sprinkled all throughout the album that really make it stand out from the pack. The band effortlessly keeps the listener guessing and manages to build an atmosphere while still staying in the realm of a genre that is built almost exclusively on crushing the listener at all costs. The drumming is masterful and really the backbone that holds everything together. The whole album gives the feeling of rushing through a maze where every corner holds another monstrosity, but, occasional you take a turn and run into something beautiful. Well, maybe not beautiful exactly, but there is some refreshing breaks from the controlled chaos occasionally spattered in there for good measure.

Overall Four Dimensional Flesh is a breath of fresh air for the genre. While I've always loved me some knuckle-dragging brutal death, it's nice to see a band coming to the forefront offering something much more dynamic than what one would normally expect. The band manages to add progressive tinges to one of the most brutal a primitive styles of music known to man. This one may even be a good gateway album for someone looking to get into the subgenre, as I could see many people who typically don't gravitate towards the more brutal stuff finding something to love here. If you go back and listen to their 1994 demo it is shocking to see the development Afterbirth has had since then. All too often we see bands that vanished into obscurity in the 90's come back and release a subpar album. Afterbirth bucks that trend and I think most would be hard pressed to find another band make a return quite like they have. The demo they'd released back in the day was pretty awesome, especially for the time, but these past two full lengths are a whole different beast altogether. I highly recommend anyone into extreme metal in genre give this a listen along with the previous full length! It will be very interesting to see where the band goes next. Definitely a name to keep a look out for in the future! GET IT!!

Carve the Earth- Blood Magik

AN AUDIO GRIMOIRE TO SUMMON THE ALMIGHTY RIFF!

Carve the Earth is a blackened thrash band out of Oregon. The band has been around since 2015 and dropped one EP in 2016 prior to this release. Blood Majik clocks in at a mere 25 minutes and the band does not waste a second of your precious time. Right off the bat the band comes to the ritual table bringing forth their brand off thrashy, black metal tinged riffs. Blood Magik shows off a near perfect blend of the two styles. The black/thrash metal subgenre is easily one of my favorites and compared to most other bands claiming this genre tag (in my experience at least), this band seems to lean more  towards the black metal side of things in the songwriting department. This makes for a healthy dose of atmosphere coupled with the balls of the more aggressive side of thrash, marrying into a perfect storm for metallic greatness!

One of the stand out features of the band is the vocals. Jerin Smith delivers a very wide variety of different vocal approaches and it really keeps the listener guessing what kind of wretched delivery he'll be dishing out next. Throughout the six tracks there's a healthy dose of putrid shrieking, some standard screams, and oddball growl, and a nice hearty yell here and there. "Eve of the Blood Magik Rite" is the first appearance of what may be his most unorthodox sounding performance. These odd vocals are sprinkled throughout the EP and while it may be a little off-putting to some, to me, it gives the band a truly distinct sound. Smith's delivery overall keeps the album feeling fresh and helps the runtime fly by with ease.

Blood Magik spends a good amount of its time throwing out killer riff after killer riff. Most of the tracks here do an amazing job creating an epic atmosphere without sacrificing the savage nature of the music. Tracks that lean into the black metal influence full force like "Forging the Hammer" and the closer "Perverse Creation" prove to be standout songs. Carve the Earth do a stellar job when playing the speedy, disjointed sounding tremolo sections. Overall the whole album showcases a band in their sweet spot. Not a note of filler to be found front to back, just killer songwriting and awesome performances to back them up. Each track has it's own, fleshed out identity and many elements that make them stand out. The production here is also great. Another release that has the bass sitting high up in the mix and it benefits the sound greatly. On the track "Eve of the Blood Magik Rite" the bass even gets a little solo moment that leads into an awesome build up.

Overall Blood Magik is a quick listen and one that is well worth your time. Fans of the genre will not be disappointed in the slightest. This is yet another example of 2020 already being an amazing year for metal and we haven't even hit the halfway mark yet! If you're on the fence I'd recommend giving "Forging the Hammer" and "Hypnotica" a listen, and if you like either of those take the dive and soak in this fantastic slab of metal.  'Hypnotica" ends with the catchiest riff on the album, and the ending of "Forging the Hammer" is no joke either. Anybody into thrash or black metal that's more riff based would be a fool not to give this one a shot. Anyone out there just into interesting, energetic vocal performances would be wise to give it a spin as well. This is really one of those albums you can play front to back, then when it's over, hit the play button once again and enjoy just as much as you did prior. Replay value through the roof, riff writing through the roof, audible bass that is badass, all the ingredients needed to concoct a killer metal album that will slay you repeatedly. GET IT!!!

Live Burial- Unending Futility

Live Burial is a death metal band from the UK. I nearly skipped this one because the album cover just didn't exactly leap out and scream "awesome death metal" at me, but upon listening I quickly realized what a mistake that would have been. The band features members of Horrified (whose first album I recall enjoying quite a bit) and this is their second full length offering. They manage to dish out that nasty old school sound without getting trapped into the [insert band name here] worship category. From the intro with it's soaring leads followed by a tremolo laced barrage to the near ten minute epic closer "Cemetery Fog" Living Burial are here to flex their death metal muscles and bury any weakling listening alive!

Upon first listen the main thing that stood out immediately was the mix. Everything is balanced out so perfectly here. No instrument is completely dominating and the bass isn't just following the guitar in the same old boring fashion. The two stringed instruments mesh in a way that paints a picture of a dungeon crawling battle that perhaps for the poor fellow on the cover just ended poorly. "The Crypt of Slumbering Madness" truly sounds FUCKING MASSIVE. When this track came on the album really caught my attention. The bass stands out and almost takes the spotlight on this one. Some of the songwriting here is very strong to say the least. The leads that close this track are icing on the metallic cake as well. When the band slows down with their more epic, lethargic approach everything really works to great effect. "Rotting on the Rope" is a great example of Live Burial doing this to near perfection. It's followed up by the beautiful interlude "Winds of Solace". The fretwork here is breathtaking and it works incredibly well with the pacing of the album and it's placement.

The vocals are delivered in a way that really adds to the attention grabbing nature of the album. The playing isn't overly flashy from anyone but definitely has some nice, memorable noodly passages sprinkled in for good measure. As mentioned before the bass really does add a refreshing layer to everything else in the mix and really makes a big stride in making this album stand out from the pack. Everything just comes together in a way that gives "Unending Futility" an insane amount of replay value. It's been in rotation for me for a hot minute now and anytime I find myself going to play a single track I quickly find myself playing the album in full without a second thought. With all the quality stuff that has been dropping lately this statement truly says something about how well put together this project really is.

Overall Unending Futility is a pretty killer death metal album. Upon going back and checking out the first one this is a big step up for my ears. All of the tracks here that break the five minute mark are the cream of the crop. The band does an amazing job creating a foreboding atmosphere with a lingering feeling of dread to top it off. This one comes highly recommended for anyone looking for some good mid paced death metal jams. Don't get me wrong, the album is heavy and has it's fair share of nasty, headbang inducing riffing, but, they also spend a decent chunk of time in a more subdued, crawl of anticipation lurching towards this moments of full-blown badassery. If you plan to be lazy and just skip the album, please at least hit some streaming site and give the opener "Seeping into the Earth" a shot. I feel like anybody with a single death metal loving bone in their body would be hard pressed to not dive a little deeper after hearing that epic slab of metal goodness. Very excited to see what Live Burial comes out of the woodwork next to decimate us. JAM IT!!!

Imperial Savagery- Lashing the Feral Swine

Imperial Savagery is a vicious death metal 4 piece from Chicago, Illinois. The band is chock full of vets in the metal scene and they dropped their debut album back in 2014. The debut was an amazing slab of death metal so upon seeing this released I was stoked to say the least. I got to discover this band at a small fest some years back and they dish out pure mosh inducing madness. Guitarist Flannagan rocks a stinkface that gives the impression that he might just snap his guitar in half and eviscerate some poor audience member at any moment. It's clear when listening that the band had taken that 6 year gap and honed their craft to unleash this somehow even more menacing beast of an album. Clocking in at 27 minutes of all killer no filler Lashing the Feral Swine is everything that most death metal bands wish they could be.

The album comes barreling at you like a freight train of brutality straight out of the gate and doesn't let up in the slightest. The weak will have no luck here... "Churchgate Proclamation" kicks off with a sample that sounds like blades sharpening, a fitting intro as the band quickly assaults with jagged riffing to cut the listener down to size. With most tracks lingering just above of below the 3 minute mark there's absolutely no fat to be trimmed here. The runtime flies by and the riffs come aplenty. It's hard to pick out highlights when an album is damn near flawless like it is in this case. The all out drum attack on "Frozen Ritual of Shame" springs to mind though, which on all fronts sounds like a firing squad dumping lead into your ears. The contorting riffs featured on "From Advent to Casket" are certainly no slouch either. Like many of the greatest albums in the genre this thing feels like it could derail at any moment, spiraling out of control and injuring nearby bystanders. "Claiming Dominion" is a perfect example of this barely controlled chaos at its finest.

The self titled debut was already a monster on it's own but this album expands upon the foundation they'd set and ups the ante in every way imaginable. The vocals are even more ferocious, the riffs are even more tangled and crushing, the drums are just pure insanity through and through. The bass also seems to be a bit louder in the mix, which adds to the brutality of the pummeling tenfold. With all of these elements combined each little contortion of the instruments hits the listener with an adrenaline rush that feels as though some kind of ancient power is coursing through your veins. If I were to punch a wall with "Vengeance Over Virtue" blasting in the background I assure you, the building it was a part of would be rubble in an instant.

Overall Lashing the Feral Swine is a quick demonstration of pure death metal mastery. This year has been pretty solid for metal so far but after a few listens this easily took the number 1 spot for now. I don't think there's a single fan of the genre that could possibly be disappointed in this offering. This thing is even uglier than the debut and it pulls no punches. It's rare to find an album that so perfectly incapsulates a genre pushed to its limits. There is not a single dull moment or wasted note to be found front to back. Highly recommended that anyone out there that enjoys death metal gives this at least one listen and I guarantee you, it will stay in rotation from then on. Kudos to Horror Pain Gore Death for always releasing top notch stuff and giving these guys a launching pad for this attack disguised as music! Weak death metal bands take notes, or catch the lashing like the feral swine you are! JAM IT NOW!