antiMusic.com: Demonical - Black Flesh Redemption Review

Demonical - Black Flesh Redemption
by Matt Hensch

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Demonical won't throw anyone for a loop on "Black Flesh Redemption." It's safe to assume the Swedish group found its niche in its homegrown brand of death metal right from the start, and has since comfortably released nothing but pure pulverization. The four-song "Black Flesh Redemption" EP does the usual Demonical shindig, delivering a summary of the band's style in just a hair over seventeen minutes. The EP's main success is its flawless netting of Demonical's detailed and destructive type cooked up in ways we've seen and heard before, albeit spiced to make these tracks each sound different and stand on their own. A bit under the weather compared to Demonical's impressive armory of hell weapons, but still a killer.

One thing to point out is that these tracks are more developed than the short onslaughts which frequented the rooms of "Darkness Unbound." The only one that falls into that ballpark is "To Become the Weapon," a three-minute offensive featuring traditional Demonical fare along with what is the most poignant guitar solo Demonical has cooked up. "Cursed Liberation" and "Drown in Flames" protract the slaughter by mixing up their paces to include slower sections and melodic leads. The former is a strong frenzy of Swedish death metal, while the latter brakes on the speed for ultra-heavy parts led by unhurried beats and thundering double bass licks. All three mentioned thus far are ravenous and bleeding, just the way Demonical does it best.

"Throne of Perdition" mirrors the band's lengthened, slow-churning numbers like "King of All" and "The Great Praise," running beyond the six-minute mark. This area, though a vital slice of Demonical's style, is almost always the weak spot; "Black Flesh Redemption" dips a bit here. The brief strain in the calf, however, is far from an Achilles heel that would otherwise cause the EP to cave in. In fact, the weakest moments here are far from horrible, just not up to the usual Demonical standard. The fact remains that these songs are less memorable than those on albums like "Death Infernal" and "Darkness Unbound," but "Black Flesh Redemption" burns hotter than Hell regardless. More of the same, but I'm not whining.

Demonical - Black Flesh Redemption
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