Review Summary: Brutal death metal keeps stepping its game up.
Brutal death metal really is an acquired taste. Even for seasoned metal fans, this type of music can be a bit grating. Non-stop blast beats, riffs as heavy as a monster truck and vocals that sound like a corpse howling while being molested by a serial killer. Yeah, I get that those things may not be everyone’s cup of tea. However, if those things sound appealing to you (you sick bastard), then you may want to stick around.
Kakothanasy is a brutal death metal band from Switzerland and
Metagonism is their second album, with the first album being released nearly 6 years ago. They must have used the off-time to concoct a formula on how to cave your skull in with nothing but RIFFS. Duh, it’s brutal death metal, this album is full of them. What they manage to do is take all the chaotic goodness of a band like Defeated Sanity and twist it to sound “slammy” while never going into full blown slam death metal. The breakdowns shake the ground beneath your feet, but they never last too long or become stale. There’s always another bedazzling face-melter right around the corner.
The blasts and insanely technical fills, plus the ear-ringing ping of the tasty snare, supplement the bonkers riffage perfectly. It’s as if they’re completely in sync and the tight, clean production really helps that cause. Clean production isn’t always a bad thing as long as the product behind it has some substance to it. A lot of modern death metal bands tend to bring nothing but technical prowess to the table. They think if they play fast that it will make for good music and that just isn’t the case.
The vocals really stand out as a highlight here as well. The sheer depths of torture that the vocal chords have to be stretched just to make the gurgling, slit-throat sound present here is truly astounding. Speaking of torture, this guy sounds like he’s been chained to the bottom of the ocean and water is flooding his lungs. Each gargle is a desperate plea to make it all stop. The demonic echoes float like an alien in the night sky as the riffage pounds you to oblivion and back.
Metagonism is a mind-altering riff fest that will leave you dazed and confused. It’s a cosmic journey into the bowels of the universe. You’ll end these 30 minutes feeling like you’ve just floated in a UFO with no recollection of what happened or who you encountered. The riffs and blasts will leave you battered and without memory. You will know one thing though, you’ve just received a beating the likes of which you never have before. Stop what you’re doing and come enjoy the primitive space riffs.
