Oblivionized [UK]
Nullify the Cycle
2012
Demo
Malignant Manifestation Productions
Brutal Death Metal/Grindcore
Last year’s debut EP of English brutal death metal/grindcore outfit Oblivionized, Abhorrent Evolution took me by surprise with the nice mixture of brutality, technicality and energy that is contained in that 18 minutes of madness. The release of the band’s brand new demo, Nullify the Cycle then left me anticipating for more of the bludgeoning death metal that was presented on the EP, and expectations were certainly high as I went back once more to re-listen to the EP.
As expected from a demo release, the production quality is markedly rawer than that of Abhorrent Evolution, and the muddiness of the songs are immediately noticeable. The urgency in the band’s pace, the brutality and the technicality are still present in the band’s music as the band blasts their way through right from the opening The Nullification of Philanthropy, without leaving any chances for the listener to warm up at all. The blasts of drummer Jonathan are still impressive, combining speed and sharp precision in his drumming. Guitarists Sammy and Geoff also throw in a myriad of complex riffing and lead guitar works, and this is sure to please fans of the more technical side of death metal. The brutal death metal side of the band can especially be heard on Cycle of Deprivation with the crushing riffs that are unleashed as well.
Unlike the death growl and gruff shouting combo that the band utilised heavily on their previous release, on Nullify the Cycle, Zac’s gruff shouts take a much higher prominence, giving a somewhat more grindcore-feel to the release. Unfortunately, this takes some of the initial charm that Oblivionized had on me out, with Zac at times ending up sounding more like an incoherent shout, causing songs to sound messy. The band also experiments with their musical style on title track Nullify the Cycle, a track that is uncharacteristic of the band’s musical style, being a slow, acoustic track complete with clean vocals and acoustic guitars, taking the listener by surprise. While the band manages to retain their theme of misanthropy with the lyrics of desolation, I would have personally preferred if the band had stuck to their usual brand of technical/brutal deathgrind, and would perhaps work better as an interlude or a closing track to a full length album. That said though, the quality instrumentation that the band has presented thus far has certainly left me impatiently waiting for a proper full length release of the band, and Nullify the Cycle is still undoubtedly a nice, albeit temporary way of quenching the thirst for now.
Nullify the Cycle is available for free download at this location.
Related articles:
Album Review: Oblivionized – Abhorrent Evolution
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©2012 Heavy Metal Tribune | Hong Rui