Whenever I write a review for a death metal band that tried to change things up just a little bit, I think about that sweaty old rocker, with his battle jacket, beer and torn jeans, and I imagine trying to convince him that he could listen to something else for a change.
Knowing full well that this could be an impossible scenario, I put to you oh sweaty old rocker, the likings of Scarab and their latest release Martyrs of the Storm.
There is a good marriage of eerie reverence and absolute and total destruction in this release. The vocals speak to a primal need to dominate the world, while the music ebb and flows between terrific and uplifting melody to absolute chaos. I feel that this is textbook modern death metal at the moment.
There is a nod to the greats of death metal, but extra elements (orchestra, emptiness etc.) that cause it to move beyond the 90s golden age of death – which is a good thing in my honest opinion – I think the time for traditional death metal is lost and there is no sense in flogging that particular dead horse. With very little to criticise in this release, I did find something to have a grip about.
There aren’t many changes between the tracks.
That’s literally it. Many songs sound very similar and I’d like some diversity. It kind of sounds like a guy who gets the best meal of his life every day, but then complains that there’s no variety, but there it is. Suitable for those who might consider listening to something different to Suffocation’s Effigy of the Forgotten once and a while.
Release Year: 2020
Label: ViciSolum Productions
Category: Album
Country: Egypt
Reviewed by: Liam Frost-Camilleri
