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| #FOR FANS OF: Melodic Death Metal, Arch Enemy, Be’lakor, Vrademargk |
This debut EP from Houston’s Melodic Death Metal newcomers, The Isdal Cadaver, shows a definite amount of potential in the genre though there’s still the ever-present amount of cliché work to be found in the scene. Mixing a sturdy mid-tempo attack with thumping drumming, dexterous fills and tight, clanging bass-lines with a fury of melody-driven lead-work that really fits in well with the melodic nature of the guitar-rhythms, this makes for a somewhat decent attack that has a lot going for them. Knowing when to pour on the speed for what amounts to mid-tempo arrangements at their fastest, this is enjoyable with a delightful crunch mixed with stylish leads flowing with melodic hymns that works quite well for the band. What happens when they drop the tempo, either into plodding rhythms or sprawling atmospheric sections filled with celestial-sounding arrangements doesn’t really suit the band either way as these are far away from their more enjoyable segments which gets this one far more energetic and enjoyable throughout when it’s pouring on the speed. The fact that this one also really eases up on the material with a sampled intro and a throwaway final track does hurt this by giving this so few enjoyable moments that it really struggles to build up enough to get going, and then it ends on a rather troubling note. It’s not enough to really hurt this but it does count. Forging the title track intro as clanking industrial noise and sampled narration gradually builds into marching drum-patterns, proper first song ‘Ozymandias’ gives this a fine sampler effect with mid-tempo paces, hearty use of deep death-growls and screeches amid a slew of familiar-sounding melodic guitar lines that race through several intriguing tempos but always stays somewhat energetic. The more-energetic ‘The Living Autopsy’ offers an overall faster pace with bigger drumming and speedier rhythms with rather frantic guitar melodies running through for a fine highlight, while ‘This Cursed Lineage’ carries the same energies into much lengthier and kinetic passages. ‘1692’ is a lot more of a melody-heavy offering that occasionally fuses aggression into its running time which is a lot lower compared to others on here for a somewhat plodding effort. ‘Bloodwatcher’ is back on track somewhat with a larger concentration on the aggressive riffing while the melodic fundamentals do come through quite nicely for an overall enjoyable effort. The final track, an acoustic version of ‘Ozymandias’ is pretty much forgettable and a throwaway bonus that doesn’t really do much as it drops the instrumentation from the previous version in favor of acoustic guitar strains and light tapping rhythms. Overall, it’s not enough to really harm this one but thankfully the good stuff here does make up for its’ few flaws. (Don Anelli)
(Self - 2014)
Score: 70