MALEVOLENT CREATION – Dead Man’s Path (EN)
What can you expect from a band that has been keeping true to itself for decades? That they won’t disappoint you. Hard task. No doubt. But if there’s a band capable of doing it, that one’s MALEVOLENT CREATION, the Florida Death Metal veterans from the 90’s that are now back with their evelenth album, entitled «Dead Man’s Path», with which they bring back to their line-up drummer Justin DiPinto after the «polemical» departure of Gus Ríos.
As I was saying, one can always know what to expect from MALEVOLENT CREATION. They have always remained true to themselves. With no innovation. With no experiments. Just pure Death Metal. But that doesn’t mean they haven’t evolved throughout the years, with their earlier albums with Thrash and Speed Metal elements, with almost dissonant moments. And in fact this new record takes back part of those early MALEVOLENT CREATION blending them with their newest releases, with a more prominent melody and a really heavy mix, sometimes almost suffocating. Vocals also seem to play a bigger role, and the overall songwriting seems to be more well-thought, with a lot of variations, even slow tracks or spoken vocals (as for instance on the title track). There is no shortage of dark harmonies, parts with a lot of atmosphere and interesting contrasts. This way cuts as «Corporate Weaponry» show their fastest and most fierce side, and that mix between melody and brutality, with plenty blastbeats but also a great guitar work that provides the necessary dose of melody, in perfect communion with some well-thought tempo changes. While other tracks as «Fragmental Sanity» remind of those early 90’s MC, with Thrash nuances, specially in those old school flavoured guitar riffs.
Little more needs to be said about this album. They are MALEVOLENT CREATION. They are early 90’s Florida Death Metal. Doesn’t that mean something to you?
Century Media (2015)
Rating: 8,5/10
