Bloodbath is a Swedish death metal supergroup that formed in early 2000. Bloodbath started with with Mikael Åkerfeldt (Opeth) on vocals, Dan Swanö (Edge of Sanity, Nightingale) on the drums, Anders "Blakkheim" Nyström (Katatonia, Diabolical Masquerade) on guitar, and Jonas Renkse (Katatonia, October Tide) on bass. They released their first full length album,
Resurrection Through Carnage, in 2002, two years after the successful release of their three song
Breeding Death EP. In 2004, Mikael Åkerfeldt left Bloodbath to free up more time for his full-time band, Opeth, and in his place Bloodbath brought in metal renaissance man Peter Tägtgren (Hypocrisy). Dan Swanö then gave up his position as drummer to become the second guitarist for the band, and to take his place, Bloodbath found the rather unknown Martin Axenrot (Witchery, Satanic Slaughter) to be it’s new drummer. With the success of it’s new lineup change, Bloodbath released it’s sophomore album,
Nightmares Made Flesh in Europe in 2004.
Peter Tägtgren, the vocalist, uses a well blended combination of both brutal death growls with black metal shrieks that fits well with the evil and dark atmosphere surrounding Bloodbath’s music. Dan Swanö and Anders Nyström’s guitars work well together, with crushing riffs mixed with awesome solos and some (rare) melodic breakdown, the two release an aura of pure chaos upon the listener. Jonas Renkse, the bassist, plays at a slower speed then the guitarist, thus creating a more dark environment in the music with some heavy distortion. Martin Axenrot’s drumming is the last piece in Bloodbath’s music. Using punishing blast beats and intense drum skills, Martin Axenrot proves to be a very talented drummer, and helps hold together the music to create the perfect sound of pure unbridled mayhem.
The album begins with
Cancer Of The Soul, begins with blistering riffs and the furious pounding of the drums. After Peter Tägtgren delivers some of his heavy death growls, the song slows down for a mere 3 seconds before coming back hard. The song is a perfect opener and defines the overall sound of the album. Quickly following
Cancer Of The Soul is the brutal song
Brave New Hell, which portrays itself to be one of the best songs on the album. The song has a very even structure and a very catchy chorus, the song even has an awesome solo tacked on to the end of it.
Soul Evisceration is next, with more crushing riffs and hellish vocals that make the song another good track full of chaos. The track as a whole doesn’t compare well to the two previous tracks, but does still maintain the dark atmosphere in Bloodbath’s music.
The next track, and another standout track,
Outnumbering The Day, fueled with fast and haunting riffs and a catchy chorus, the song also has some melodic breakdown similar to that of
Cancer Of The Soul.
Feeding The Undead follows with heavy riffs and Peter Tägtgren’s hellish screams, and even has Peter Tägtgren sounding like a ranting demon at several parts. Aside from the vocals, however, the song isn’t much of a standout compared to the previous tracks. Probably the best and most grotesque song on the album,
Eaten, begins with slow and heavy riffs and Peter Tägtgren snarling Cannibal Corpse-style lyrics. The song also has a very catchy chorus, two guitar solos, and a melodic breakdown that makes the song the best on the album.
Bastard Son Of God follows with Martin Axenrot furiously pounding on the drums and Peter Tägtgren’s death growling. The track is insanely fast, but other then that, it is not much of a standout track.
Year Of The Cadaver Race, a slightly slower song then
Bastard Son Of God, begins with some quick guitar riffs before Peter Tägtgren takes over with his more black metal-style of vocals. The song as a whole flows really well, and even has a haunting melodic breakdown that sends shivers down my spine, but the track doesn’t match up to tracks like
Brave New Hell and
Eaten. Next is
The Ascension, with it’s evil opera like intro, the song then bursts into another track similar to that of
Outnumbering The Day, only with slightly more melodic guitar work and a better (but shorter) guitar solo.
Another brutal yet haunting track,
Draped In Disease, begins with more haunting guitar riffs followed closely by Peter Tägtgren’s howling before taking a quick melodic breakdown then blasting into a heavy mix of death and black metal vocals.
Stillborn Savior is next, with furious blast beats and insane howling/ screaming kicking off the song to a brutal start. Aside form the awesome screams by Peter Tägtgren, and a funky bass solo breakdown, the song doesn’t have much else to offer that the other tracks haven't already given.
Blood Vortex finishes the album with slow yet crushing guitar riffs and more grunt-like vocals. Just as the previous track though, this song doesn’t have much else to offer that the other tracks haven't already given. Overall,
Nightmares Made Flesh is a very strong album and is highly recommended for any brutal death metal fans or for fans of heavy Opeth, Hypocrisy, and Suffocation.
Pros
-- Haunting and dark riffs that fuel this album
-- Awesome guitar solos and dark melodic breakdowns
-- Great vocals
-- Good lyrics
Cons
-- Can be a bit repetitive at times
-- Only slightly above average production, even by Century Media’s standards.
Track Listing
1. Cancer Of The Soul (4.5/5)
2. Brave New Hell (5/5)
3. Soul Evisceration (4/5)
4. Outnumbering The Day (4.5/5)
5. Feeding The Undead (3.5/5)
6. Eaten (5/5)
7. Bastard Son Of God (3/5)
8. Year Of The Cadaver Race (4/5)
9. The Ascension (4.5/5)
10. Draped In Disease (4.5/5)
11. Stillborn Savior (3.5/5)
12. Blood Vortex (3/5)
