Album Type: Full Length
Date Released: 01/05/2020
Label: Nuclear Blast
“Solitude
In Madness” CD//DD//LP track listing:
1. Shock And Awe
2. Into Oblivion
3. Despair
4. Incineration Of The Gods
5. Sanctification Denied
6. And Satan Wept
7. Emptiness
8. Final Declaration
09. Dancing In The Slaughterhouse
10. Stigma Of Divinity
11. Bones
2. Into Oblivion
3. Despair
4. Incineration Of The Gods
5. Sanctification Denied
6. And Satan Wept
7. Emptiness
8. Final Declaration
09. Dancing In The Slaughterhouse
10. Stigma Of Divinity
11. Bones
The Review:
Polish
death/thrash kings return with this brutal and vicious 30 minute slab of metal.
With James Stewart firmly installed behind the kit, what do the band bring to
the table this time? A feast of death metal, that's what! Half an hour of
to-the-point extremity, hitting hard on every track.
It's
eleven tracks long and with “Shock and
Awe”, it starts with blast beats, frantic riffing and shredding leads. It
continues in exactly that vein. It's adrenaline inducing stuff and is even more
insistent than the excellent “The Empire” album from 2016. Track
after track, the record simply steamrollers the listener. It's catchy in places
as well- like all the best death metal. “Into
Oblivion” echoes Morbid Angel at their peak and that is a very
high compliment. It's expertly played, mixed and produced.
Its
head nodding and neck snapping at the same time. It's rare that a death metal
album inspires this kind of desire to break the speed limit/destroy something
with joyful abandon, but Vader have managed that here. “Despair” is a nasty little track at not
much over a minute in length, before Stewart fires up the tank and rolls over
skulls on “Incineration Of The Gods”.
Piotr Wiwczarek is as commanding as ever with Marek Pajak and Tomasz playing a
blinder throughout. I can't actually think of a more reliable and consistent
death metal band than Vader- possibly Cannibal Corpse? Certiainly not Deicide,
or Morbid
Angel or Entombed etc etc. I think of Vader
as the Motorhead
or Overkill
of death metal- consistently good, record after record.
As
the album progresses, it doesn't really change or dip at all. “And Satan Wept” is just as menacing as
anything in the first half of the album and so it goes from there. Each track
is concise and brutal, mixing death and thrash elements to perfection. It
doesn't rely on blast beats or pure speed so is not boring. It has songs, riffs
and excellent time changes- witness “Emptiness”
for proof.
The
last few tracks are just as cruching; “Final
Declaration” is a percussive tour de force, “Dancing In The Slaughterhouse” is weighty, “Stigma of Divinity” is blasting perfection and “Bones” finishes with a relatively
lengthy four minutes of serpentine riffage and heaviness. As Vader
albums go, this one is excellent. As death metal albums go, therefore, this is
exceptional. I can't find anything to fault here- this is death metal as it
should be. Not bland, boring or aimless. It cuts like a razor.
“Solitude
In Madness”
is available HERE
Band info: facebook
