Post by Loucifer on Jun 24, 2008 0:06:06 GMT 10
louciferspeaks.com/cdreview/decayed.html
Band: Decayed
CD Title: Hexagram
Year: 2007
Website: decayed.atspace.com
MySpace: myspace.com/decayedlusitania
Label: Folter Records
Featured on: Loucifer Speaks Exclusive
Rating: 8.9 / 10
It seems to me that Folter Records can do no wrong at the moment - every release I've heard from them recently has been, at best, an extreme metal classic in the making and, at worst, bloody good! So, where does "Hexagram" fall in all of this? Is it a classic?
You certainly get your money's worth with this album. Decayed have provided you with 13 tracks - which is especially good since some bands have got into the habit of releasing albums with between 8 and 11 tracks on. Admittedly the last two tracks on this release are 'bonus' tracks, but they still count!
The album opens with "Prologue" which is just an intro. The track that follows it, "Moonrise", is when the album really begins. "Moonrise" is a good Black Metal track, but it didn't really captivate me as much as I had hoped. On the other hand, "Demoniac Gathering" did grab my attention. This is a fantastic Black Metal track with an almost 'chunky' feeling to its riffs. This is a track that you wouldn't want to mess with on a dark night... and seems perfect for when you're wearing your corpse paint.
"Ceremonial Cleansing" keeps to the same high quality as the previous track. I've learnt very quickly that it's never a good idea to judge an album on the first couple of tracks - "Ceremonial Cleansing" and "Demoniac Gathering" have both surpassed the standard of "Moonrise" with relative ease. I'd love to know what the lyrics are to this track - I suppose that's the downside of reviewing the promo copy!
The following track, "Ancient Rituals", is my favourite track on this album. As far as I'm concerned, this track is awesome. Everything about it just makes me want to hit that 'repeat' button and listen to it over and over again (and I have done). The bass is brilliant. The tempo is good. The vocals are excellent and are understandable whilst still remaining harsh and grim. Decayed certainly seem to know what they're doing and the experience that they've gained since they started, in 1990, has certainly paid off to their advantage.
The next track shows that Decayed aren't all about producing (well thought out) Black Metal. It would appear that they have another string to their bow - Doom Metal. "The Invocation" is very heavily Doom orientated. The tempo varies throughout this track and just goes to show what Decayed are capable of doing.
"Burnt Offerings" is a really short yet atmospheric track. It basically consists of creepy synths / keyboards and someone talking... but their voice has been put through a voice changer or something. While it is short, and - in my mind - doesn't really count as a song, it does what it has set out to do and that's scare the listener. It's a brilliant way to put you on edge. The following track, "Feast of the Accursed", is fast-paced and good to headbang to. The title also follows on well from the previous track and makes me believe that the two tracks are linked in some way.
I'd imagine "Into Realms Unseen" to be a very popular live track. For some reason it makes me want to throw my arms in the air and make a noise... I haven't decided which noise yet, but I'm certain it will be horrific! The following track is another favourite of mine called "Departure". This track is hard-hitting and deserves to be paid attention to.
"Epilogue" is where the main bulk of the album seems to end... and what an ending! This track is a no holds barred attack on the senses and it's out for blood. Decayed have created another track that I could quite happily listen to on numerous occasions.
The following two bonus tracks - "Destroyer" and "Spikes, Leather and Bullets"- are good tracks in their own right, but there's definitely something separating them from the rest of the album.
Overall, "Hexagram" is a very good, solid album. It's never going to go down in history as an album that changed the face of metal in any way and I doubt that it could be said that Decayed have broken any boundaries here. However, I really don't think that it ever was the band's intention to recreate Black Metal. I think their goal was more likely to create an awesome Black Metal album - and they've certainly managed to that. I was going to list some recommended tracks, but it soon became clear that I would pretty much just be giving you the track listing of the album. This is because each track is strong enough to be able to stand on it's own. So, do yourself a favour and check it out! I would highly recommend this to any fan of the genre and also to those new to the world of extreme metal.
Tracks:
01 Prologue
02 Moonrise
03 Demoniac Gathering
04 Ceremonial Cleansing
05 Ancient Rituals
06 The Invocation
07 Burnt Offerings
08 Feast of the Accursed
09 Into Realms Unseen
10 Departure
11 Epilogue
12 Destroyer
13 Spikes, Leather and Bullets
Band: Decayed
CD Title: Hexagram
Year: 2007
Website: decayed.atspace.com
MySpace: myspace.com/decayedlusitania
Label: Folter Records
Featured on: Loucifer Speaks Exclusive
Rating: 8.9 / 10
It seems to me that Folter Records can do no wrong at the moment - every release I've heard from them recently has been, at best, an extreme metal classic in the making and, at worst, bloody good! So, where does "Hexagram" fall in all of this? Is it a classic?
You certainly get your money's worth with this album. Decayed have provided you with 13 tracks - which is especially good since some bands have got into the habit of releasing albums with between 8 and 11 tracks on. Admittedly the last two tracks on this release are 'bonus' tracks, but they still count!
The album opens with "Prologue" which is just an intro. The track that follows it, "Moonrise", is when the album really begins. "Moonrise" is a good Black Metal track, but it didn't really captivate me as much as I had hoped. On the other hand, "Demoniac Gathering" did grab my attention. This is a fantastic Black Metal track with an almost 'chunky' feeling to its riffs. This is a track that you wouldn't want to mess with on a dark night... and seems perfect for when you're wearing your corpse paint.
"Ceremonial Cleansing" keeps to the same high quality as the previous track. I've learnt very quickly that it's never a good idea to judge an album on the first couple of tracks - "Ceremonial Cleansing" and "Demoniac Gathering" have both surpassed the standard of "Moonrise" with relative ease. I'd love to know what the lyrics are to this track - I suppose that's the downside of reviewing the promo copy!
The following track, "Ancient Rituals", is my favourite track on this album. As far as I'm concerned, this track is awesome. Everything about it just makes me want to hit that 'repeat' button and listen to it over and over again (and I have done). The bass is brilliant. The tempo is good. The vocals are excellent and are understandable whilst still remaining harsh and grim. Decayed certainly seem to know what they're doing and the experience that they've gained since they started, in 1990, has certainly paid off to their advantage.
The next track shows that Decayed aren't all about producing (well thought out) Black Metal. It would appear that they have another string to their bow - Doom Metal. "The Invocation" is very heavily Doom orientated. The tempo varies throughout this track and just goes to show what Decayed are capable of doing.
"Burnt Offerings" is a really short yet atmospheric track. It basically consists of creepy synths / keyboards and someone talking... but their voice has been put through a voice changer or something. While it is short, and - in my mind - doesn't really count as a song, it does what it has set out to do and that's scare the listener. It's a brilliant way to put you on edge. The following track, "Feast of the Accursed", is fast-paced and good to headbang to. The title also follows on well from the previous track and makes me believe that the two tracks are linked in some way.
I'd imagine "Into Realms Unseen" to be a very popular live track. For some reason it makes me want to throw my arms in the air and make a noise... I haven't decided which noise yet, but I'm certain it will be horrific! The following track is another favourite of mine called "Departure". This track is hard-hitting and deserves to be paid attention to.
"Epilogue" is where the main bulk of the album seems to end... and what an ending! This track is a no holds barred attack on the senses and it's out for blood. Decayed have created another track that I could quite happily listen to on numerous occasions.
The following two bonus tracks - "Destroyer" and "Spikes, Leather and Bullets"- are good tracks in their own right, but there's definitely something separating them from the rest of the album.
Overall, "Hexagram" is a very good, solid album. It's never going to go down in history as an album that changed the face of metal in any way and I doubt that it could be said that Decayed have broken any boundaries here. However, I really don't think that it ever was the band's intention to recreate Black Metal. I think their goal was more likely to create an awesome Black Metal album - and they've certainly managed to that. I was going to list some recommended tracks, but it soon became clear that I would pretty much just be giving you the track listing of the album. This is because each track is strong enough to be able to stand on it's own. So, do yourself a favour and check it out! I would highly recommend this to any fan of the genre and also to those new to the world of extreme metal.
Tracks:
01 Prologue
02 Moonrise
03 Demoniac Gathering
04 Ceremonial Cleansing
05 Ancient Rituals
06 The Invocation
07 Burnt Offerings
08 Feast of the Accursed
09 Into Realms Unseen
10 Departure
11 Epilogue
12 Destroyer
13 Spikes, Leather and Bullets
