Misery Index: The Killing Gods

I recently reviewed a new album by Gory Blister entitled The Fifth Fury. I won't repeat my opinions of that album here, only to say that the album was superb; it's easily one of my favorites of the year so far. So what does that have to do with Misery Index? Not much, maybe, but both bands have released excellent new albums this year and I'm excited about the future prospects for death metal because of it.

For those readers who don't know both bands, they are somewhat similar in style, playing roughly the same kind of death metal but with some important variations. Gory Blister is slightly more planted in the technical death metal camp, whereas Misery Index is slightly more grounded in death / deathgrind. Whatever we want to call it, this band has put together something powerful and exciting.

The first five tracks (covering roughly the first fifteen of the album) form a collective track called "Faust," a retelling of the famous character of the same name. This story, perhaps best told by writers such as Christopher Marlowe, Goethe, and Thomas Mann, usually concerns a man who makes a pact with the devil so he can gain greater knowledge and power. Though things seem to go well at first, they don't end well. They never do. For me, this extreme metal retelling of the Faust legend was one of the best things about the album. I especially liked "The Oath" and "The Harrowing." The latter track was my personal favorite, a song that I will listen to regularly for at least another month or so. Outside of this adapted Faust story, other highlights include the masterful title track "The Killing Gods," "Gallows Humor," and "Heretic."

With this new album, Misery Index provides some of the strongest evidence yet that they are one of the current champions in the death metal arena.

Track Listing:
1. Urfaust
2. The Calling
3. The Oath
4. Conjuring the Cull
5. The Harrowing
6. The Killing gods
7. Cross to Bear
8. Gallows Humor
9. The Weakener
10. Sentinels
11. Colony Collapse
12. Heretics
13. Thieves of the New World

Added: July 23rd 2014
Reviewer: Carl Sederholm
Score:
Related Link: Band Facebook Page
Hits: 3242
Language: english

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