Hell yeah. Germany's Muhammed Suicmez is back with his formerly one-man band, now a four-piece with a complete lineup, still focusing on speedy technical death metal riffing with lots of sweep picking and flurried note-based runs with sick melodic solos that are perfectly orchestrated. A few key differences this time out are that there are a few more prominent basslines on occasion, not to mention more solos, which is definitely a plus because in my opinion the solos are what makes this band so fucking great. The vocals seem more defined and aggressive here as well, still low growls, but somehow a bit more towards a brutal death metal style, despite the fact that the music offers much more than that. I'm totally blown away by how effortlessly comfortable the performances are, because as blazing and complex as some of this stuff is, the plying is fucking pristine with clarity and fluidity. A perfectly executed recording helps that aspect shine, as the guitar tone is superbly honed for the rhythms and a little smoother and more vibrant for the lead runs. The percussion is on the rigid side, but possesses ample density to work very nicely against the guitars. I think if I could change anything I'd like to hear the bass playing be prominent all the time, not just during a few key passages, and the vocals could probably fall back a smidge against the core of the instrumentation. All in all it sounds great, though. Writing-wise, "Ignominious & Pale" slows things down at times and gives the riffing more space to breath with some nice dual guitar interaction and minimal dissonance seeping in; with the latter aspects increasing in the awesome "Diminished to B", which stands out from the other tracks not only because it too lets the tempos ease up a little, but because of the way the riffs string together and effectively roll through staccato styled deliveries. The title track, among others, also throws in a few sick chords that are reminiscent of Gorguts on some level, though certainly more tangible and surface level, nothing too far out there. The drumming is damn solid as well, definitely knowing when to sit back in a relatively basic pattern or add in carefully placed changeups or fills, cutting loose into flare filled bursts of quick rolls or snazzy cymbal work. The solos still kill me though, conveying more power and emotion than the vast majority of death metal solos, especially during some of the slower passages with emphatic note bends that bring to mind the almighty Carcass' work on "Necroticism..." or "Heartwork" (sans the rock and without being at all "upbeat"). Quite possibly the strongest run of the entire CD is closer "Symbiotic in Theory", which flies all over the place with amazingly high energy picking patterns that practically never let up. The closing passage of "Only Ash Remains" is totally fucked though, I have no idea how to describe it and I'm not sure an explanation exists for such an unexpected twist!? Visually the layout's alright, it could be better, but does look fine. The color scheme and typefaces are very consistent, with lots of bleak imagery of tombstones and textures created from trees. The lyrical content has made leaps and bounds of progress, however, no longer filled with violent imagery or anatomical jargon, instead opting for a much more abstract and thought out approach: "Incarceration of personality is the sad deception of self-denial. The one that denies the inner self flees into deception..." Another short but sweet winner from one of the most talented acts out there. I'm glad that Suicmez seems to recognize the power and borderline necessity of a compact running time within this format as well, because were this record 10 - 15 minutes longer it would indeed wear a little thin, because the overall approach is still one that's rather similar in complete atmosphere. I've got no real problem with that because the musicianship is incredible and there are definitely some obvious progressions from "Onset of Putrefaction", but Necrophagist hasn't peaked yet. I eagerly await their future work as well, because the level of talent exhibited on this disc is practically unparalleled in the death metal genre today, and once the songwriting abilities max out these guys are going to annihilate the planet.
[Relapse]
Running time - 32:54, Tracks: 8
[Notable tracks: Diminished to B, Epitaph, Seven, Symbiotic in Theory]
Necrophagist - http://www.necrophagist.de
