Review Summary: The Last Man on Earth has very obvious influences from horror films and succeeds greatly in creating a gothic atmosphere, wether it be through it's massive, symphonic synth and organ solos, or the song lyrics themselves.
Instrumentally, this album is nothing short of amazing. It's technical, fast, heavy, melodic, and there are even some fantastic solos tossed into the mix. At times it feels like Cattle Decapitation, while at times it feels like The black Dahlia Murder, both comparisons work together to make a truly memorable album. There are pulverizing moments of shear, in your face brutality; moments which left me in awe. A prime example being how awesome the random saxophone on the title track is.
The vocal performances on The Last Man on Earth are nothing unheard of in the realm of death metal. But despite that, the vocals get the job done better than one would expect.
Some of the tracks like '70 Dead Part 2- The Scarecrow of Medan' are solely there to be an aural onslaught, others take a more melodic approach while maintaining their unrelenting heaviness, a prime example being the fourth track 'The Last of the Summers Wine' which also happens to be the album's high point in my opinion with it's epic solo, short acoustic interlude and it's fantastic ending.
Despite having many high points, a few tracks such as 'Paradise' and 'Castle Freak' seem to slow the album down and are almost completely forgettable. Another problem I had with this album is the lack of re-playability; each of the songs are fantastic in their own right, but when the album is listened to as a whole, it seems to drag on and becomes stale after repeated listens.
The Last man on Earth is definitely one of the best death metal releases of 2013 and should be heard by anyone who's either a fan of Cattle Decapitation, The Black Dahlia Murder, or melodic death metal in general.
4/5
