Has it really been five years since Vltimas released ‘Something Wicked Marches in’? The debut really struck a chord with me and is one that I return to pretty regularly. It’s fair to say I wasn’t in isolation and the album was pretty much universally well received throughout the extreme metal underground and press. I therefore jumped at the chance to give their sophomore a listen.
As I’m sure most Ave Noctum readers will be aware, Vltimas are something of an international death metal supergroup comprising David Vincent (ex-Morbid Angel) on vocals, Rune “Blasphemer” Eriksen (ex-Mayhem, Aura Noir) on guitar, Flo Mounier (Cryptopsy) on drums, Ype Terwisscha van Scheltinga (ex-Dodecahedron) on bass and guitarist João Duarte (Corpus Christii) on guitars, hailing from the USA, Norway, Canada, Netherlands and Portugal respectively. Despite the geography, ‘Epic’ was written with the whole band gathered together at Vincent’s Texas ranch, accounting from the organic feel that pervades the album.
‘Epic’ is perhaps a little more direct than its predecessor and although it has moments of pummelling brutality such on ‘Scorcher’, the album remains far more mid paced, cerebral and considered than many death metal releases. Sure, there are plenty of chugging riffs, incisive solos and powerful drumming but there are also creative melodies giving the tracks varying textures as the mood ebbs and flows. Of course, David Vincent’s distinctive vocals are a cornerstone of the album and as usual he puts in a powerful performance. His vocals have their own swagger, one minute soaring vibrato sections and the next growled harsh vocals, but always an undercurrent of a death metal Elvis.
The key thing here is that all of these different elements sit comfortably together, feeling completely natural and (I’ll use the word again) organic, as though they belong together and with each section building on the others in symbiosis. Sounds a bit pretentious for a death metal review, but once you hear the album you’ll know what I mean. The other thing about the album is that it’s one of those where you hear more with each listen and it really does reward any time that you invest in it. I’m currently on my sixth listen and it is sounding better each time.
‘Epic’ is a worthy title for this release and I highly recommend it to fans of death metal and extreme metal in general, especially if you enjoy having the boundaries pushed.
(8/10 Andy Pountney)
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