Review Summary: Change came
Deeds slanderers: I hope you’re taking note, because Deeds of Flesh have just significantly transformed their sound for the first time since conception. Deeds fans: I hope you’re not turning away, because rest assured Deeds of Flesh have not quite turned their backs on you.
Of What’s To Come may very well be the most pivotal album in the band’s career. Its release was preceded by some pretty huge milestones for the band. Jacoby Kingston, founding member and bassist/vocalist, announced his departure from the band and was replaced by the much lauded tech-death prostitute/basswizard Erlend Caspersen. Shortly after the release of
Crown of Souls, Deeds of Flesh also added another guitarist to their lineup, Sean Southern. But what really sent shockwaves through Deeds’ fanbase, was the announcement that Southern would be adding guitar leads to the next album.
Many Deeds fans have long prided their loyalty to the band based on the fact that they have never relied on flashy guitar playing or solos to be technical, or to make a name for themselves. With that said, they still don’t rely on flashy playing, but the change isn’t unwelcome. It’s hard to deny though, that the addition of leads and the increased technicality have reeled in a whole new following for the band.
The leads themselves are what might be considered “wanky,” but they are executed rather tastefully. At times they even flirt with fluffier emotions, but never do they step outside the boundaries of brutal death metal; it doesn’t hurt that Southern has an easily identifiable soloing style either. The riffing has also become noticeably flashy and some of it borders on chugging, but it’s Erik Lindmark we’re talking about here; the man couldn’t write a poor riff if he tried. One flaw with the album doesn’t so much lie within the riffs, but the production’s impact on the riffs. Deeds’ production has always complemented Lindmark’s riffing, and here it still does to an extent, but the relationship isn’t as intimate as it once was. Lindmark’s objective with
Of What’s To Come was to repeat riffs as seldom as possible, a task he came fairly close to completing, but I think somewhere he realized that such a method wouldn’t exactly be the best possible move, so kudos to his foresight.
The entire atmosphere of the album is different to previous releases, and even a bit more matured. As opposed to the familiar gore-themed brutal death metal, what we have teeters more towards science fiction than anything else. Don’t let that sap your hopes though, there’s still plenty of [allusions at] killing in the lyrics. The concept of the album is fairly typical, there seems to be a war between the humans and some machine-aliens on the horizon; it isn’t only reflected by the lyrics, but also by the production, which sounds mechanical and futuristic, though not necessarily generic.
The biggest flaw with the music here is that it doesn’t seem like Mike Hamilton transitioned to the new style as well as Lindmark did. Not only does his drumming seem uninspired this time around, but the drums aren’t very loud in the mix; surely a relationship between those two points isn’t out of the question. Another flaw is that perhaps the band sacrificed a bit too much of their sound all at once, which could’ve made the transition hard on some of the fans. There are still some hints of Deeds of old to be found here…somewhere.
There is plenty to like about
Of What’s To Come, both for skeptics and loyal fans alike. It’s also assuring to know that Deeds ignored an easy opportunity to sell out, and that they remember the people who got them to where they are. Plus there’s a re-recording of
Infecting Them With Falsehood which is always fun to sing along to.
Highlights
Unearthly Invent
Of What’s to Come
Century of the Vital
