Review Summary: Vader prove that even their own brand of repetitive-yet-solid old-school death metal is not infallible, with 2002's Revelations marking a low point in their discography due to badly implemented slower sections and dreary quicker tracks.
"Revelations" is an album that found Polish death metal titans Vader at a crossroad. Forever haunted by accusations of being unwilling to change their formula, and released in the aftermath of their wildly beloved album "Litany," the band could either have elected to continue on the well-trodden path that served them so well on that particular record and predecessors such as "De Profundis," or they could attempt something a little different. By merging vastly differing tempos, more hooks than the average Vader track, and a strange mixing choice for the vocals, "Revelations" stands out in the Vader discography as something of a black sheep.
With an opening minute that sounds akin to some of the slower Dying Fetus or Decapitated passages, 'Epitaph' does everything it can to alienate the listener. The vocals sit a little differently in the mix to previous records, feeling distant from the instrumentation, and the insistence upon utilizing numerous much slower riffs without any of these being especially memorable utterly kills any potential this song shows when the verse kicks in. In the immediate aftermath, 'The Nomad' demonstrates that this was not simply one failed experiment either, with more obnoxiously dull mid-tempo riffing that goes against the "consistent" tag that is usually associated with the band. 'Wolftribe' completes a trio of more experimental tracks, with an intro reminiscent of "Carnival Is Forever" era Decapitated, and whilst this is definitely the strongest of the opening salvo of songs, it is still somewhat of a disappointment. The blast beats and tremolo riffs certainly help it to be identified as a Vader album through and through, but the egregious use of tone deaf soloing and the "We are the wolftribe" refrain towards the end completely kill any efforts dead to take the band seriously.
Thankfully, 'Whisper' stands out immediately as the most natural-sounding track, standing proudly in the annals of great Vader moments. This is a far more relentless aural assault, with drum breaks abundant helping to ensure the listener focusses on the riffing and allowing those riffs to sink into the consciousness. With around a minute to go, however, even this song cannot avoid the trappings of many of the others, with the guitarists insisting upon littering boring and monotonous "Slayer solos" throughout the tracks. This has become a regular occurence throughout their discography, and at the risk of sounding like a brief rant, it is something that becomes very tiring. If a band is unable to effectively convey either emotion or add something to the overall product with their solos, they should consider culling these moments, and Vader are a prime example of this. Every song here is replete with multiple instances of a fretboard being butchered, and it becomes tiresome.
The rest of the album is comprised of a mixture of by-the-numbers old school death metal tracks and the same poor experimentation found in the first three songs. 'Whisper' is the highlight here, with only 'Torch Of War' really offering anything else truly pleasing. Sandwiched between these two highlights is the uninteresting 'When Darkness Calls,' and after the solid riffing of that latter song, the final three songs of the album find the band unable to sustain any real quality. Penultimate track 'Lukewarm Race' has a couple of good riffs, but they become lost in a mire of the forgotten, and the closing song has some truly dull guitar work, with the opening mindless chugs losing interest before the song has truly begun, and then the slow riffing returns in all its abyssmal out-of-placedness.
Vader are a band usually able to be relied upon for a consistently solid experience, if nothing special. "Revelations" shows that even those bands embodying such traits are unable to sustain this throughout their entire discography, being mostly devoid of quality. As with all Vader albums, there are a couple of standout songs, but this is an album I recommend avoiding.
