Decimate my speakers
You know when you put on an album and you’re not expecting much but then find yourself pricking up an ear and raising an eyebrow? Well this is just the album to make you do that. Then after the third listen you’ll be foisting it off on your friends so they don’t miss out. Despite a cover and band name that suggests battle metal this is in fact an iron heavy slice of technical brutality, fusing death metal with quality melodies.
There’s a lot going on with this album, layers to be discovered once you get over the initial blast. For instance title track ‘Decimate the weak’ starts with a grin inducing low growl and a death/black metal cycling guitar riff and then breaks off into thrash, slows into super heavy grind but still manages to slot in a sing along chorus underpinned with the odd sub woofer exploding bass boom. There’s a widdly guitar bit and keyboards that wouldn’t be lost on a female fronted fantasy/goth band. Pretty good for a song that lasts 3:38. One thing’s for sure you’re not going to be bored.
This album is full of ideas, good ones. It insists that you pay attention and rewards you with enough different facets that I’m loathe to simply pigeon hole it. Instead I’ll just say that it hops through the darker and heavier genres like death and black metal, hardcore and grind but also isn’t afraid to leap into the faster thrash and plain old heavy metal genres as well.
Some of the songs are quite anthemic ‘Angels of debauchery’ being a case in point, heavy as fuck to start with and death metal to its core, it opens up showing its technical ability and interwoven melodies before blindsiding you with a sudden mellow interlude before transforming with an outpouring of passion into one of the best songs on the album. If this song was in a bar it’d be gorgeous but deadly, you’d want to take it home but you’d be too afraid it was going to kill you.
Ok I’m losing the plot now, which says more about this album than anything, the albums out January 28th and if you think you’re metal then go and get it. There’s more to this offering than your average half a dozen albums put together but it manages not to lose itself being overly clever, it just cherry picks from the genres without losing sight of what it’s trying to achieve.