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From a capital city, we have ourselves today a capital death metal act. Formed in Washington, D.C. circa 2013, Genocide Pact is a three-piece extreme band signed to Relapse Records. And, since their inception, these lads have released thus far one demo and two full length albums. A little over a week ago, however, Genocide Pact unveiled their latest sophomore addition to the public. So Let's talk about it.
Order of Torment is a forty minute long full length death metal release consisting of eight brutal, yet blunt tracks. The additional themes and imagery pulled me in at first glance due to their realistically daunting messages. This album expresses feelings of pain, suffering, facing oppressive authorities and more. Order of Torment stands as a modern death metal release, albeit with some old school vibes that make it a bit more of a mixed bag in that regard.
First off, I really have to comment in regards to the production quality, which is one of the album's strongest points due to its balance of nostalgic and "new age" so to speak. The recording quality gives off a sort of early 90s death metal feel at times...and that is a plus in my book...but it also sounds a bit updated at other times when it needs to. The instrumentals here are pretty sweet in all honesty. For instance, you've got the fast paced riffage mixed in with the blast beats as well as the drowned chords combined with the slower percussion patterns. The sort of galloping riffs found in the opening track get catchy after a while, and this catchy, shredding feeling continues in other tracks such as "Spawn of Suffering" and "Authoritarian Impulse" with their respective brands of riffage and transitioning. The vocals on Order of Torment are one aspect that I'm wishy-washy about, with the positive element of the vocals being their fitting sound quality in addition to their energy. I'm also impressed with the names they got to work with them on this effort; the inclusion of Kevin Bernsten as engineer and producer along with the typical sickeningly death metal artwork provided by Joe Petagno are two more surprising additions to this release.
In terms of the negatives, only a couple of things come to mind. One of these is part of the vocal aspect, which I mentioned before. On one hand, I enjoy the nostalgic qualities of the vocal sound. On the other hand, however, I also feel as though a little more could've been done with them. The vocals get kind of cliche after a while and there isn't much variety to them, with the "cookie monster" aspect shining through. Then again, they fit the music in accordance with OSDM stylistics...so not really sure what to make of it. Another thing to point out is that the production isn't always consistent in this album: a factor that also could use a bit more attention in some songs.
In all, despite its faults, Order of Torment is still a great modern death metal release with some old school nostalgic vibes, stellar riffs, pulse-pounding instrumentals and a lot of ambition. Genocide Pact have shown decent promise on their part through this unadulterated and brutal sophomore release. I will be looking forward to what they have in store for the future.
Fave Tracks: "Spawn of Suffering", "Authoritarian Impulse"
For Fans Of: Cannibal Corpse, Incantation, death metal new & old
**This release is available now here!**
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-Review by: Dave Raffy
Musician, reviewer, fan & promoter
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