Review Summary: Fleshgod Apocalypse releases a solid EP that whets your appetite for classical music and brutal death metal mashups.
Fleshgod Apocalypse is a technical brutal death metal band from Italy, and they fuse their brand of death metal with some classical elements and sections.
Fleshgod Apocalypse is on this EP:
Tommaso Riccardi- Vocals and Guitars
Paolo Rossi- Vocals and Bass
Cristiano Trionferra- Vocals and Guitars
Francesco Paoli- Drums, Guitars, and Vocals
Francesco Ferinni- Piano
The opening track of this five song EP shows pretty much EXACTLY what Fleshgod is all about. “Thru Our Scars” opens with a barrage of drums and guitar. Then, it transitions into a short period of a violin group playing. It then goes back to the brutal riffing and drumming you encountered briefly and carries that throughout the rest of the song. But do not expect pure brutality all the way through interspersed with classical bits. In fact, the title track and outro, “Mafia,” is an entirely orchestral piece of haunting beauty. Also, it is surprisingly catchy at times. The chorus of “Abyssal” is probably the catchiest death metal chorus I’ve ever heard, and it WILL get stuck in your head for a long period of time.
The classical pieces are interspersed well, because Fleshgod Apocalypse is primarily, a death metal band. Do not expect huge amounts of time devoted to classical bits, but it will always fit well at the moment. The outro of “Abyssal” is great, with the guitar playing a slow melody over an orchestral background, and this song is probably the pattern for which all Fleshgod songs should follow. This outro also transitions great into the next song, “Conspiracy of Silence.” In fact, the transitions are great on all the songs, none of them feel jarring or out of place. Even transferring into the cover song works well. Speaking of the cover song, “Blinded by Fear,” it is probably the best At The Gates cover I’ve ever heard and it does justice to the original while still taking a new take on the material. And then abrupt works well, and followed by the beautiful, haunting, and melancholic “Mafia” makes all the previous brutal material almost take on a different light.
I have to make a special mention of the lead guitarists, Tommaso and Cristiano. They create lots of beautiful and technical riffs that are fantastic and well played. Every song just gleams from their impressive riffing and soloing. The drummer, Francesco Paoli, is a machine. He plays with technicality and brutality, unrelenting in his drumming.
With all this praise, my one real negative comment is that the EP leaves me wanting more. I want more of the technical, brutal, beautiful metal. While that is good, I feel it is a little too short, even for an EP. Also, apparently, this EP is dedicated to the fight against organized crime, which I applaud the guys for.
Pros:
Great technical playing
Orchestral parts are haunting and beautiful
Insane drumming
Cons:
Too short
Standout Track:
Abyssal is easily the best track, but Mafia is also hauntingly beautiful, so it gets the second slot.
