Review Summary: The kings of Malta have returned with another banger.
It’s always refreshing to see a band evolve from their original form. There’s nothing wrong with sticking to the status quo, but it’s nice when bands experiment with their sound and give it subtle tweaks, even if they don’t work out in the long run. Beheaded, brutal death metal band hailing from Malta, has done just that on their newest album,
Għadam, and yes folks, it works out for the better.
These guys have been around for nearly 35 years and the majority of that time has been spent playing straight-up, no frills brutal death metal. Well, the guys decided to switch it up a bit. There is a heavy black metal influence poking its head through here both in the riffs and the overall atmosphere. We have lots of evil, Darkthrone-esque tremolo picked chords throughout the entirety of the album, making it sound as if they were recording with a Satanic ritual happening in the background.
Don’t get me wrong, there’s still plenty of brutal death metal savagery going on as well. The production is as hammering as ever. The overall sound is as heavy as an 18 ton truck barreling down the highway with no brakes, leaving behind a trail of death and destruction for anything in its path. When the riffs aren’t hypnotizing you with their demonic force from the underworld, they’re absolutely ripping your face off with their thunderous roar.
Vocally, this is different from any Beheaded album I’ve heard before. We definitely have the glorious gurgles typical for a death metal album, but we also get cleaner, more decipherable spoken word sections that are just downright creepy. It feels as if djinn is calling out to you from a deeper, darker dimension. Both of these styles working together is a bit odd, but in the best way possible.
Għadam showcases Beheaded turning in a whole different direction and succeeding at it. The old band is still in there, but they’re throwing a wrench into their formula. The black metal influences are very welcome and the alternate vocal style really takes the listener for a loop. Honestly, this is one of their better albums. It’s not just typical death metal brutality, and while that is never a bad thing, it’s nice to see the guys shift their sound just a tad.
