As we near Christmas with each coming day the next installment of our Christmas Album Of The Year goes to one of the most complete bands so far on this list. Having dealt with tragedy from an early start that hasn’t dissuaded the Polish boys with this we see the return of Decapitated with the excellent Blood Mantra.
Decapitated – Blood Mantra
Coming back to the fore with their new album this year, Blood Mantra is Decapitated but not quite as you know them, on the surface the record seems to be linear,repetitive and well just quite middle of the road tech death. However delve deeper into the album and you begin to hear all the nuances, flourishes of new drummer Michal Lysejko Along with Vogg‘s pressure chamber tight guitar work and of course diminished solos.
The band have however always been a very rhythmically based group. With pneumatic drum patterns and guitar riffs to match, showcased on their breakthrough Organic Hallucinosis much of the Decapitated of old still remains, it just manifests itself in a newer more streamlined form. With many songs on Blood Mantra following the usual Decapitated-esque structure but employing something completely new.
Take “The Blaspehmous Psalm To The Dummy God Creation” on paper, a simple stop start style song determined to eradicate any sense that Decapitated have not become a band to take lightly. Sifting through the surface, we hear the changes in guitar riffs, slight contrast with drums and the Rasta‘s devoid of emotion, chock full of rage voice. Whilst there is plenty of material that would make old school Decapitated fans happy its the more experimental songs “Blindness” and “Nest” that truly make the album phenomenal.
The album itself retains a Terminator (2)-esque post apocalyptic atmosphere, with sermons about how humanity has been enslaved by technology and its prophecy coming to nightmarish fruition. Mirroring the idea thematically the artillery barrage of “Veins” is a perfect example of the inevitable. The heightened ominous feeling casts a dark lingering cloud over the listener enhancing the music further. Although the songs may seem simple and give the effect that Decapitated are attempting to reach a wider audience it’s anything but.
What makes this album worthy of album of the year though is the slow but sure sense of growth. Similar to our previous choice Opeth the album is a layered affair. On the surface the songs all retain a blueprint of simplicity. When dissected however the various different sounds that add colour to the record. Crafting riffs that would seem simple to the layman yet if attempted prove to be just as tricky as any other material. Be it the driving riff behind title track “Blood Mantra” or the decisive finality of second single “Instinct” this is a Decapitated that has evolved into something all the more threatening.
Making Decapitated the oxymoron of the paradigm simplest form of modern technical death metal.
