Review Summary: A Morsel of what could be.
It should come as no surprise that Wretched’s 2014 release, Cannibal, represents another solid release for the band. What does come as a surprise is the absolute lack of direction within the songwriting of the first half of the album. Not to say that there is a weak song on the album or that the album itself is a failure, because there are some pleasant surprises within. However, with comparisons to The Black Dahlia Murder increasing the band does nothing to separate themselves from what TBDM has already accomplished in their discography; that is a strong catalog of melodic death metal.
The first half Cannibal unfortunately blurs together offering little in the way of interesting instrumentation or experimenting with the feel of tempos and time signatures. It isn’t until after “L’appel Du Vide,” which serves as nothing more than a break in intensity that Wretched begin to show their true colors. “Cranial Infestation” offers a nice atmospheric break with an interesting bass riff before charging through the rest of the song. “Salt Lick” plays with different feels of tempo through an almost stop time effect. The title track, “Cannibal,” offers the only instrumental track of relevance on the album. As strong as the track is, it pales in comparison to the other much more interesting instrumentals in Wretched’s past discography. The black metal inspired second half of “To the Flies” is a welcomed and refreshing addition to the barrage of melodic death metal.
The instruments employed within are as strong as they ever have been with each instrument receiving ample time to shine through. Perhaps most astonishing is the tone and how surprisingly audible bassist Andrew Grevey is. Throughout even the heavier sections of songs the bass cuts through and adds another element to the furious guitar work rather than just supplying a low-end sound to the songs. On the topic of guitars, Steven Funderburk and Joel Moore shred and tremolo pick their way through rather impressive and technical licks. The pair is at their best, however, when they make use of soaring guitar leads, harmonies and solos that add upon Wretched’s already well established sound. Drummer Marshall Wieczorek blasts his way through most songs rarely departing from the atypical death metal fare for drummers. While it is impressive at times, it neither adds nor detracts from the music.
The most notable improvement, and one of the largest contributors on the album, comes through Adam Cody. In my review of Son of Perdition, I criticized his over-bearing presence and over produced vocals fairly harshly. There is no doubt that his presence is still felt and is front and center in Cannibal, however, this time the vocals sound more natural and even compliment the band at times. Cody’s guttural growls and unusual highs sound as strong as ever, but it is in the blackened second half of “To the Flies” and the beginning of “Salt Lick” where his unconventional approach to vocals adds another dimension to the music and helps supplant why people find him to be one of the stronger vocalists in the genre.
Once again Wretched find themselves right back where they were after the release of Son of Perdition. Instrumentally, they are as strong as they ever have been, however their songwriting throughout the first half of the album lacks the same ingenuity and creativity as the second half. Cannibal is by no means a weak offering; however it is wrought with inconsistencies in songwriting. The only consistency within Cannibal is that Wretched have offered up another solid release that does nothing to separate themselves from their peers and what has already been accomplished within their genre.
