Death is June -Fleshcrawl : "Epitome of Carnage"

 

This is the 10th album from this German death metal band. They have had a few incarnations under different names, but this version of the band emerged in the 90s. They have a dense, almost Entombed-like production feel, but the vocals on the opening are buried in the wall of guitar. They grind with a more deliberate feel on the second song. The vocals snarl out from the guitar a little, but the wall of riffs is the heart of what they are doing here. "Grave Messiah' finds them speeding up into the more typical death metal sound. It's fine for what it is, but since the vocals are just an obligatory texture, it does not lend itself to the catchiest songwriting. 

"Embers of Wrath" has a little more memorable riffing, which works better than the more bludgeoning assault of "Committed to Suffer." Though even that song finds its purpose more with the more accented punches. While death metal is not known for being subtle, they could have employed more atmosphere and melody on "Reign Forever," as it's just a churning blur of distortion. None of the songs really sprawl out, nor could they, in any way that makes sense, thanks to the high intensity they maintain at all times. At times, they use a Decide formula where they start off fast but take their time and find their groove, which happens to some extent on "Orphan God," which, to their credit, benefits from huge flourishes of double bass. 

"Pain of Thorns" is more deliberate in some passages, but the fast parts feel rushed. The gritty grind of Entombed now a signature of this album. There is a section that could have been cooler if the bass had been given a tone with more balls to it. "Heralds of Death' is where the songs begin to run together for me; unfortunately, what separates it from the previous songs is some feral blasting in places. The last song rides the ave of double bass and does little to dynamically seperate itself either. Though I will say the mix to this album is better heard through headphones. If you want to know the growls are there but don't need much from them and love the Entombed style of burly death metal, then this band will be worth your time. I am giving it an 8, as if want to hear Entombed. I will go listen to them, but this band created the album they wanted to and care about songs more than most death metal bands that are this heavy.Out on Reigning Pheonix Music.   

pst249