By: Josh McIntyre
Album
Type: Full Length
Date
Released: 27/03/2020
Label:
Translation Loss
“Devouring
Ruin” CD//DD//LP track listing:
1. Dissolve And Release
2. Kana Tevoro (Kania! Kania!)
3. This Abyssal Plain
4. Elegy
5. Mouth Of Abolition
6. Paean
7. Torchbearer
8. In The Lair Of The Rat Kings
9. Monuments to Impiety
10. The Procession (Death March To Eternity)
2. Kana Tevoro (Kania! Kania!)
3. This Abyssal Plain
4. Elegy
5. Mouth Of Abolition
6. Paean
7. Torchbearer
8. In The Lair Of The Rat Kings
9. Monuments to Impiety
10. The Procession (Death March To Eternity)
The
Review:
Calgary’s Wake has certainly proven themselves to be a band that doesn’t want
to repeat itself. Their sound has always been a bit more varied than others and
with 2020’s “Devouring Ruin” it is made absolute that Wake cannot be defined as just
grindcore or even deathgrind as they pull from other heavy subgenres more than
ever before. The result is their strongest LP to date.
Wake is still
incredibly aggressive, but we have more variance than ever. The average song
length has increased dramatically (earlier, more strictly grind albums had
songs that rarely reached three minutes) giving more time for riffs to twist
and turn as they travel across time. Track three, “This Abyssal Plain”,
is just one example of drastic tempo changes as it starts with a fury before
being suddenly slogged down into a more doomy and atmospheric approach. These
songs are unpredictable and that makes them all the more interesting, whether
they be two minutes long or ten and a half.
Musical ideas are aplenty and Wake isn’t running out of gas
anytime soon. Blasting grind with thrashy riffs are as prevalent as melodic
doom licks. The riffs for “In the Lair of the Rat Kings” are especially
disgusting, pulling from the Artificial
Brain/Gorguts world.
Hell, there’s even a great guitar solo on “Mouth of Abolition” and I
usually detest guitar solos. In short, there is plenty of time to have your
face ripped apart on this album but the juxtaposed moments of euphonious
purpose give it the clarity needed to be a grand extreme metal record.
Wake’s refusal for
stagnation has set them apart from their peers. After a handful of LPs and
shorter releases they continue to grow and stay musically curious, a rarity for
an extreme band over a decade old. They’ve gradually moved from a more
grindcore oriented group to one that brilliantly fuses different elements of
metal to create music that is able to be simultaneously violent and downright
ravishing.
“Devouring Ruin”
is available HERE
