US Death Metal legends MACABRE return with their 6th album of morbid mania. Out now via Nuclear Blast Records.
Spooky carnival sounds start the album with an oddly unnerving feel that anyone familiar with Macabre should be anticipating. Dissonant riffs grind in with an unearthly and eerie soundscape as battering drums and maniacally howled vocals pierce through the riffs with a violent and psychotic grooving waltz of estranged warbling and brutish chugging. Macabre are back with their weirdness turned up to max. The tight drum work is certainly very stoic in the mix with remorseless beats pounding across the frenzied spasming of the guitars and those oh-so-eccentric vocals we know and love from Macabre. The guitar solos on this album are phenomenal showing technicality and graceful melodic prowess as they blister through shreds and extra-terrestrial sounding tapped licks beautifully. Aside from the obvious themes of infamous killers, there is still that tongue-in-cheek humour that Macabre have become renowned for (something that truly comes into its own at one of their insane live shows). The maniacs are back.
Weird rhythmic shifts and continually flawless drums keep you on your toes as the vocals blend more screams with clean-sung oddities in a pungently inhuman delivery of another certainly unique Macabre album. The riffs are chaotic as ever while the tightness on the guitar part comes more from the bass end and also the stunning lead work I mentioned earlier which is consistent throughout the record. The thrash and grind elements are dialled down a bit on this album in favour of weird rocky, technical and progressive Extreme Metal that runs amok through a circus of diabolical quirkiness. Macabre have always been a band that stand out in the Death Metal world and divided opinions with their superbly odd musical clowning. This album is no different with nothing but total madness included for just over 40 minutes of brain-mulching, frenetic and murderous music. If you are a fan of Macabre, this will certainly satisfy your craving for more. If you never got on with the bands strange stylings then this will probably irk you just as much as ever.
Another beautifully odd slab of Macabre’s “Murder Metal” that will certainly divide opinions as strongly as ever with their insanity-fuelled delving into history. Certainly as unique as ever with a tastefully fun and yet unsettling record of their signature quirks. -7/10
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