Bloodbath - Unblessing The Purity Review
Contents |
General Information
Original Author: Fsgdjv
Band: Bloodbath
Album: Unblessing the Purity
Genre: Death Metal
Tracklist
1. Blasting the Virginborn
2. Weak Aside
3. Sick Salvation
4. Mouth of Empty Praise
Total playtime: 15.6 minutes
Line up
Mikael Åkerfeldt (Opeth) Anders "Blakkheim" Nyström (Katatonia, Diabolican Masquerade, Bewitched) Jonas Renkse (Katatonia, October Tide) Per "Sodomizer" Eriksson (Genocrush Ferox, 21 Lucifers) Martin Axenroth (Opeth, Niefelheim, Satanic Slaughter, Withcery, NCO)
Overview
This is Bloodbath's fourth release, their second EP. The last thing they released was Nightmares Made Flesh back in 2005. Since then, they had some line up changes. Now Peter Tätgren and Dan Swanö are gone, and Mikal Åkerfeldt is back on the vocals dutys as he was on the first two releases, and Per "Sodomizer" Eriksson (who just happens to be Katatonia's sound technician) replaces Dan Swanö on the guitars.
Sound
8
The sound is quite different from Nightmares Made Flesh, you can hear that there is no Dan Swanö in most songs, but he was never the most important songwriting member anyways, Blakkheim and Renkse are still there and that's what's most important. Sodomizer does a good job aswell. The songs are really heavy and a bit faster than usual. It sounds more modern, in a good way, and there are some really catchy parts aswell.
Guitars
8
This is where you can tell why they picked Sodomizer as a guitarist. Before, they had some decent solos (even some technical on the songs Dan wrote for Nightmares Made Flesh, since he had a "local virtuoso" play some solos on his songs), but now it's really technical. I'm not a huge fan of super shred, and even though I can't say that the solos are extraordinaty or anything, they get the job done and I even like some of them. When it comes to riffs, it's what you'd expect from amazing songwriters like Blakkheim and Renkse. The riffs are just good death metal riffs, with their own touch, and I love it.
Bass
8
Jonas Renkse is insane. He's a great drummer, my favourite clean vocalist, he used to have a super awesome growl, and he's a really good bass player as he shows in Bloodbath. The bass adds so much to the overall heavyness and groove. I can't stop banging my head when I'm listening to this, even if it's on the bus and everyone looks at me. It's that good.
Drums
8
Martin Axenroth is a really solid drummer, with his own touch on everything. He's one of my absolute favourite drummers and this is one of his best performances imo, (apart from Watershed). It's just so tight and well done,
Vocals
10
As you might know, Mikael Åkerfeldt is my favourite vocalist when it comes to growling. Lets just say, this is (for me) by far his best performance ever. He gets a lot deeper than before, and he sounds a bit more charachteristic than Tätgren did on Nightmares Made Flesh (allthough that was an amazing vocal performance by him, no doubt).
Lyrics
7
The lyrics are well written death metal lyrics. Nothing fancy, nothing deep, just well written. Here's the lyrics from Weak Aside, the only song with lyrics written by Blakkheim.
We're born to reign as masters
To ashes we'll burn the pastures
Repell their ways back to nothingness
Chaos in symmetry
This glorious victory
In darkness only we can see
Our name has seen the future
Headshot target now on god
Pointblank crimson dawn
Spew forth tomorrow's spawn
Transcend with rage of the elite
The new order come to rise and shine
Write new history as we wipe and delete
An urge to rid this world of human waste
Weak aside
Defiled bloodlines severed
The lowlife's doom endeavoured
The sheep of masses trampled under our march
Set out to lead and create
This power indulge our fate
This era calls for annihilation
Our whispers outsound prayers
We claim what was never theirs
Sworn to the triumph of darkness
Down... insects bow to me
Die... insects too blind to see
Down... disgusting foul flea
Die... we remove the life of thee
As you can see, nothing special, but still well written.
Overall impression
9
I love this album, it's one of the best released to far this year (it's up there with The White by Agalloch) and it's one of Bloodbath's best releases, if not THE best. If you like death metal, or even if you don't like it but are interested in it, get this EP. Now.
