The Pitch: Swedish crusty death metal outfit The Lurking Fear (members of At The Gates, Disfear, etc) release their debut album via Century Media Records. FFO: The Haunted, Graben, Martyrdod
What I Like: I'll admit that I was pretty dissapointed with the At The Gates comeback album, but the bite that I found lacking on At War With Reality comes through 100% with Tomas Lundberg and co's Out Of The Voiceless. In fact, if you can picture a dial that runs from focus on composition and musicianship to pure, unrestricted adrenaline, The Lurking Fear have cranked that baby all the way to the latter. That first kick as the ominous titular intro transitions to "Vortex Spawn" is a doozy. Take a deep breath now, because we're not going to be slowing down for a while.
Tomas' vocals are in top form. And while they still carry his inimitable "Lundbergian" tone, he's brought a slightly different side of himself to this recording. Many of the squelchier highs from his melodeath work have been replaced with a deeper, crustier aesthetic. It's a decision that not only brings a certain freshness to his performance, but also perfectly compliments the more old school, thrashy approach to the guitar riffs and drumming. There are still plenty of Gothenburg-sounding moments sprinkled throughout this album, but more often The Lurking Fear favor a back-to-basics approach that joins elements of One Kill Wonder and The Haunted Made Me Do It with groups like Graben or Wolfbrigade
Critiques: I could argue that this album is perhaps consistent to a flaw, with many of the tracks barreling forwards at a similar pace and volume, but it seems as though this is the point.
The Verdict: Once again, if I'm rating this album solely in terms of whether it accomplished what it set out to do, The Lurking Fear have definitely succeeded in their goal. Every single track is a banger, so much so that I could care less about originality in this particular case. Out Of The Voiceless is a filthy, stampeding mammoth with no account for you standing in its way. The only way out is through. Get it Friday.
Flight's Fav's: Vortex Spawn, Upon Black Winds, The Cold Jaws of Death...just pick any of them
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