Reviews : Albums : Immolation, "Unholy Cult"

Immolation release "Unholy Cult" just as we in North America are entering autumn, and the timing is approrpriate. Autumn is truly the season of death, as daylight shrinks from the land and all things shiver and die into the ever colder winter months, knowing that no relief will come soon. How delicious then to have the sound of Hell's heat as a soundtrack for this decaying season?

Immolation have been around since the early boom of New York death metal, and were contemporaries with Incantation, Suffocation and bands of that ilk when death metal was really starting to understand itself. They've only made four proper albums previously, but fresh from their stay at Metal Blade, Immolation have signed on with Olympic Records and delivered their best album to date. It's a continuation of their last three albums ("Here in After", "Failures for Gods", and "Closer to a World Below"), so If you've heard any of those albums, you know what to expect. If you haven't, just imagine sick, blackened soundscapes centered around a bottomless death roar, strange time signatures made natural by savant-like drumming, and short, throbbing riffs that can hypnotize with repetition or chase and stab with tremolo picking and pinch harmonics. The songs are generally crazily arranged, but maintain enough hooks and choruses to keep the whole thing from falling into total abstraction. Compositions tend to be on the long side, routinely breaking five minutes, and both the title track and album closer "Bring Them Down" push past the seven minute mark with drawn out codas that simply reek of evil. Best of all is that the band's spotless performance is captured by their best production to date, delivering their refreshingly organic tones with a clarity and warmth that Immolation's music needs to really make sense. In particular, Vigna's guitars display a range of tones and sounds, which is a rarity in these days of buzzsaw playing and plug-n-play production.

Of course, this whole thing is a formula for them by now, but it's just such a damn good formula that one never tires of hearing it. And how nice is it to see an old band staying true to their course and just getting better at it every time out? It's a testament to this band that they have not only maintained their original vision and musical integrity, but continue to expand on both even as they begin their second decade together.

"Unholy Cult" is going to be very, very hard to top.

Standout Tracks    Unholy Cult    A Kingdom Divided    Bring Them Down

Muxlow