Disarray - Spreading the Death Plague
“Tough-guy” stupidity that’s a little less pathetic than [their previous release] Bleed.
[Metal Curse #11 had an additional loose page (“Last Second Additions”) inserted into the centerfold of the zine, featuring a bunch of even-shorter-than-usual “bonus” reviews of stuff that arrived after the deadline for that issue. This is one of those “Last Second Additions” reviews.]
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Diabolique - Wedding the Grotesque
Very dark and Gothic sounding, but somehow still totally a Metal band. Formed from the ashes of the infamous Liers in Wait, I expected this to be a bit speedier, but am pleasantly surprised. The songs are crafted with the utmost skill and played with even more precision, and are still full of life - or perhaps I should say death. Even the vocals are as varied and well-done as the music, which is rare with this style. Although Wedding the Grotesque isn’t a perfect album, there is little to complain about here. Even the packaging is lavish, with a full color 24 page booklet.
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Devourment - Devourment
These guys have real potential as Death Metal musicians. Both songs on their cassette possess much speed and mic-cupping vocals. I have to admit, their production wasn’t bad. But, I may have liked this better if I could even partially understand what the vocalist was trying to say.
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Devolution - Cerebrequiem
A lot of bands I hear are intense, but Devolution combine their intensity with an honestly original sound to produce a unique Extreme Metal sound. In addition to the Death Metal influences, there are also some more modern elements, such as the super dry raw yell/growl vocals that sound to me as if they would destroy the singer’s throat in about two seconds, and the weird production that makes this a little more “technological” sounding. If I said that I liked 100% of this, I’d be lying, but it’s certainly heavy and I appreciate and respect their attempt at creating a new sound, rather than following someone else’s lead.
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Deviant - The Pain It Brings
Everything about this is very well done, from the writing, to the playing, to the recording. Deviant have come up with two intense and fairly impressive Thrashers. This was recorded back in 1997, so I’m not sure if they have anything new out by now, but hopefully I’ll be finding out soon.
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Desalin - Desalin
Simple drum machine programming and okay (sometimes great) riffs. I can’t hear a bass, but maybe there’s one in there somewhere. So far, it would at least be acceptable. But the vox are generally terrible (although they and the songs themselves get better as this goes on); alternately overdriven, or sort of spoken, or whispered, or maybe something like a Pete Steele attempt. The lyrics are pretty interesting, though. But the weird part is that despite all the strikes against this band, they occasionally manage to come up with a part, or a chorus (as in the song “Rise”), or something that is seriously cool. If only they could concentrate on the strong stuff and work on the vocals and programming. A lot of fine tuning is needed, but I can hear the ass-kicking potential.
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Demonic Sacrifice - Enter the Realm of Pure Darkness
This sounds great, but it’s no better than they could have done in a studio closer to home. These guys went all the way (more than 1000 miles) to Tampa, Florida [from New York] to record this at Morrisound. They must have money to burn. As for the songs, they’re straightforward Death Metal, and played well. The vocals could, and should, be more vicious, as could the music in a few places.
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Demonic - The Empire of Agony
I guess I like my Black Metal to be more on the Thrashy side, as is Demonic. After the two-and-a-half minute keyboard intro, they start kicking ass, and don’t let up for a half hour. I’d have to check, but this may be the best Necropolis release so far.
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Dementor - Kill the Thought on Christ
Straightforward, catchy, and very powerful Death Metal. There is a little experimentation, such as when the vocals are isolated alternately in the left and right channels in the title cut, but for the most part Dementor don’t waste any time with fucking around, and simply go for the kill from the first second.
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