Vallenfyre - Splinters
Few Death Metal supergroups short of the almighty Bloodbath —inarguably responsible for the greatest Death Metal songs written in the last decade and a half— impress on the level of Gregor Mackintosh’s Vallenfyre. Anyone who still hasn’t tracked down their spectacular 2011 debut, A Fragile King, needs to get the fuck on that in a hurry. Bump it up to the top of that to-do list, because the Paradise Lost guitarist and his band of (un)merry mates have made this follow-up bigger, better, badder, and beefier, so you’re going to need some lube. Splinters is without question the first utterly essential Death Metal release of 2014. The Doom parts are Doomier, the Grind parts are Grindier, the Crust parts are Crustier, Mackintosh’s growl is growlier, and the guitars… HOLY FUCK!!! Mere days ago I was 100% committed and prepped to declare the guitar sound on the new Triptykon LP as the heaviest ever achieved. No, sir. I’m glad I put Melana Chasmata on the backburner for so long because that honor unequivocally goes to Splinters. Major props to producer extraordinaire Kurt Ballou for sprinkling pixie dust on the HM-2 sound before injecting it with the same kind of Cuban horse steroids Yasiel Puig is on. GOD DAMN!!! Thor couldn’t lift this guitar sound. For the best description of these guitars, look no further than the gent playing them, as Hamish Glencross recently went on record somewhere stating that the guitars sounded like “someone sawing wood.” Apt to say the least. But the biggest overall difference between this monster and the debut, is that this time there is no filler whatsoever. Musically, vocally, lyrically, and stylistically there is absolutely nothing left for the OSDM fiend to desire except repeated listens (and perhaps another round). I certainly don’t want to say that I’m glad Gregor’s father passed away (see A Fragile King review for clarification), but I sure as shit am thankful that Vallenfyre exists. For a project that features members of Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride, and At the Gates, believe me when I tell you that Splinters could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with any random classic you’d care to pull from that overstuffed bag of goodies. Flawless.
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