Avulsed‘s legend is not over yet.
Following its recent lineup change, the band led since 1991 by vocalist Dave Rotten (Christ Denied, Holycide, Putrevore, Yskelgroth…) – now accompanied by GoG (drums, Holycide), Alex Nihil (bass), Alejandro Lobo (guitar, Dissonath) and Víctor Pastor (guitar) – unveils its eighth album, Phoenix Cryptobiosis, via its founder’s label, Xtreem Music.
Like many good Brutal Death albums, Limbs Regeneration kicks off with an ominous sample, but the thick riffs soon take over and contribute to the heavy atmosphere, building up to the powerful Lacerate to Dominate. The first composition unveiled last year, it reminds us a little of the darkness of the intro before exploding and offering a massive rhythmic pattern complemented by furious vocal parts, but also sometimes by a few airy leads, as on the finale which joins Blood Monolith. If the vocalist just chants the song title for a few seconds, the musicians join him the third time and the sound explodes, offering a frantic pace that will also be reflected in the harmonics and vocal delivery, then it’s with Unrotted that the band develops its catchy Old School influences. The track is also very lively, but above all quite short, and it doesn’t last long before giving way to Guts of the Gore Gods, where the rhythm section conscientiously stomps along at a good pace, highlighting the more technical roots in aggressive patterns. We continue with the eponymous Phoenix Cryptobiosis, where the anguished tones develop into violence, even during the break which attempts to temporize in vain, barely allowing us to catch our breath. A few harmonics add a touch of freshness, but then we move on to Devotion for Putrefaction, which returns to the band’s brutal, primal roots, where growls and blasts meet and challenge each other, while the other instruments circle each other, lacerating us. There’s no downtime for this track, nor for Neverborn Monstrosity, which immediately follows and strikes with motivational elements to keep the flow of fury alive for the full five minutes, finally joining Dismembered, where the dark tones appear once again. The riffs are no less aggressive, just like those of Bio-Cadaver, which let heady leads accompany them like the introduction and the much more ethereal break, but we mustn’t forget that the band is all about brutality, and Wandering Putrid Souls is there to remind us of this, making every moment a veritable multi-faceted carnage to close the album, solo included.
We had to wait a few years, but Avulsed have made up for it with an excellent album of Brutal Death Old School. I have no doubt that Phoenix Cryptobiosis will leave its mark on the Death Metal scene.
90/100