I am sure the band have probably heard this before, but you would be totally forgiven for thinking that Brutally Deceased were from Stockholm, and are probably elder statesmen of underground Swedish Death metal. However, you would of course be mistaken. Brutally Deceased are in fact from the Czech Republic’s illustrious capital instead, yet seem to have captured the grim, grisly and highly distinctive sound that was coming from colder climes, 1000 kilometres further north back in the early 1990’s.
It is uncanny how the early Swedish Death metal scene seems to have really captured the imagination of bands all over the world. I can’t say what it is exactly that has inspired so many devotees of late in particular, but you can tell by the effort put in by Brutally Deceased, that they absolutely love it whole-heartedly. We know now that we can discount originality, which then begs the question; `but is it any good?’
Well, I can report that the band have absolutely and totally managed to true essence of Swedish Death Metal. If someone had told me that this album was from some obscure bunch of blonde scowlers back in 1991, I would have totally believed them. It absolutely has that sound – that sinister, dark and aggressive crunching guitar sound which for some reason makes me think of skeletons in dark, dank caverns under the ground (perhaps that’s just me). The drumming is perfect in terms of capturing the aggressive spirit of the music; no modern, manic blasting here, just grim and abrasive pounding. There are some fantastic, raucous mid-paced sections which show off the Discharge influences of some of the early Swedish bands, as well as some frantic, Slayer-esque pummellings.
The guitar work is a good balance between evil, creeping, fast picked single-note riffing and belligerent, gargantuan chords. There is also a huge dollop of melancholy, morbid melody which really spices things up. You may or may not be able to tell, but I am trying desperately not to lapse into lazy writing by listing all the classic Swedish bands that Brutally Deceased sound like. Maybe I will save that until the end…
It is pretty clear that as well as loving the old Swedish sound, the band have more than a modicum of musical talent themselves. There are some great, melodic yet mournful guitar solos, and some fantastic moments of pure, cranium crushing death metal. However, like many, many not-quite-so-classic albums from that time, it can all start to sound a little the same after a while, and while there are some heart-stopping moments of pure, molten metal, most of the songs don’t stand out. The exception here is the fantastic track `Below The Adversary’, which makes fine use of melody and crushing riffing in a way that actually lodges in your cranium like a stray ninja death-star. Also, although the grunts, gurgles and growls obviously have a lot of feeling behind them, I find them a bit monotonous after a few tracks, and it would be nice if they had a little more expression (and maybe a bit more clarity).
On the whole, Brutally Deceased resurrect that Swedish sound pretty effectively, although this is not a classic album to be honest. The band are talented, and certainly have it within them to write something great in this style, but I don’t feel they have quite reached that with this album. OK, so here goes. Think Dismember, Grave, early At The Gates, early Entombed, a touch of Necrophobic, early Cemetery… If you love all that, you will find something to enjoy on Brutally Deceased’s sophomore full length.
(6.5/10 Jon Butlin)
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