Review Summary: Crushingly groovy, uncompromising and primitive, pure to the form of old school death metal with creative tempo changes that inspire relentless, intrinsic hate.
Though this should be death doom I find the categorization lacking because rhythm changes so organic that your usual, run of the mill death metal sounds uninspired and monotone in comparison.
In a genre that adheres to it’s orthodox roots one cannot deviate too much because the original magic would be lost. What can be done is refinement of the formula, and that formula is perfected by the latest chronicles of Genocide Pact.
Every cymbal hit, blast beat and palm muted guitar chug is perfectly audible in the abyss of underground crevice that rejects light and expulses pure animalistic contempt. I would prescribe this fine album as an antianxiolytic for every stressful situation imaginable.
One simply can’t disregard the feeling of being PUMPED while listening to a composition that is consistent and flowing as Order of Torment. Some vocal performers seem strained and tiring while performing, but what we have here is so effortless and bestial that sir Tim Mullaney, the fine bellower of Genocide Pact sounds as natural as a wolf howling, dog barking or a demon simply stating the limitless metaphysics of suffering that awaits his less than eager subject. His rasp ultra low growl is accompanied by a tremolo guitar that’s more often than not in sync with percussion. This combo produces breathtaking and fun, yet incredibly hard hitting performance. Slowing down when one might expect the song will speed up and vice versa grabs attention and inspires revisiting this barbaric, primal explosion that’s so well rounded it makes the listener feel as if he is introduced to death metal for the first time.
Certain parts are even funeral doom like, not so in the rhythm sense because tempo never slows down to a dying crawl, but because impact is so weighty, hard as an tectonic plate movement.
If early Entombed recorded their material some decades later with ferocious vocals, more death and less ‘roll it might sound just like this. Great stuff!
