Necrovation: Necrovation

Necrovation's self-titled sophomore release is a heavy album that will surely please established fans and should draw out some new fans. The music is straightforward death metal--dirty vocals, tremolo picking, and so on--but the songwriting includes plenty of moments when the guitars take up a low-end march, something out of 80s thrash. The first release from this album, the single "Sepulchreal," could be one of the better tracks on the album, but to me it didn't have enough draw to impress listeners with what these guys can really do. The track begins with an arpeggiated chord that sets up a mysterious mood. As is expected, the music soon bulldozes over this effect by bringing forward the drums, guitar, and bass in a direct assault on the senses. The vocals are guttural, sometimes to the point of sounding like they are coming from the gag reflex rather than the vocal chords.

In my view, the best track on the album is "Resurrectionist" because it moves a little more slowly and patiently to establish its musical purposes. I confess that I also liked the title because it reminded me of old horror movies in which "Resurrection Men" (grave diggers) went in search of money for their services. As readers can imagine, nothing good comes from digging up bodies. I am reminded, too, of the decaying body parts that Victor Frankenstein used to assemble his famous creature. Give the track a listen, especially the terrific middle section that not only has an incredible crunchy guitar part, but also a solo that manages to be effective with its use of fast and slow passages. I really liked it.

The rest of the album is solid. To me, the second half of the album far outweighed the first half both in songwriting and in performance. Although I favored "Resurrectionist" the most, I strongly recommend that listeners check out the slow, acoustic, passages from "The Transition," a track that really shows of a slightly lighter side of the band. The closing song's title reminds me of the horror movie "In the Mouth of Madness," but I can't say I understand the formulation "mouth madness." I'll leave it up to listeners to figure out what it means. In any event, the song closes things out beautifully. I would have liked this album better if the whole thing were as solid and surprising as the second half, but I'll take what I can get.

Track Listing:
1. Necrovorous Insurrection
2. Dark Lead Dead
3. Pulse of Towering Madness
4. Commander of Remains
5. New Depths
6. Sepulchreal
7. Resurrectionist
8. The Transition
9. III Mouth Madness (The Many)

Added: October 2nd 2012
Reviewer: Carl Sederholm
Score:
Related Link: Band Website
Hits: 2185
Language: english

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