No time to rest for Paganizer!
The band led by Rogga Johansson (guitar/vocals, Carve, Dead Sun, Eye of Purgatory, Furnace, Massacre, Megascavenger, Revolting, Ribspreader…), Matthias Fiebig (drums, Blodsrit, Carve, ex-Ribspreader), Martin Klasén (bass) and Kjetil Lynghaug (guitar, Heir Corpse One, Stass, Ribspreader…) has given us barely more than a year to digest its latest album before returning with As Mankind Rots, its fourteenth album!
We start off at full speed with As Mankind Rots, the eponymous track that hits us with furious Old School roots and doesn’t hold back, giving us no respite other than the catchy melodies of the choruses and a few rare, slightly slower passages. We continue after a final acceleration on Devoured, a mid-tempo track par excellence at first that doesn’t hesitate to make its slower passages catchy before letting the drums force the pace, then unleashing jerky riffs before returning to bloody melodies with Aftermath Bleeder. The track also remains rooted in raw and aggressive patterns that sometimes give way to soaring leads, then we veer towards Death/Grind with Only Maggots and its frantic rhythm that makes certain moments chaotic, mixing furious harmonics and beastly roars. We return to simple but energetic tones with Put On Your Gasmask, a track that will leave your neck muscles no chance and features a break made up of a sampled siren and staccato touches, then Hollow moves towards more disturbing tones before revealing its weapons. Again, nothing revolutionary, but the riffing is good, as it is on A Testament to Madness, which follows and gives us a few moments to catch our breath with its menacing harmonics over which Rogga already begins to roar, reinforcing the horrific feeling before the heavy rhythm kicks in, then races ahead from time to time. The last chorus finally leads us to Afterworld, which immediately proves to be more lively and will prove it to us repeatedly before revealing its melodious and haunting leads, then The Rotting End takes over, attacking with its own riffs, but not without giving us a moment of respite. The track doesn’t hesitate to abuse a solid double kick to deploy its best weapons, and the same goes for One Way to the Grave, which—after a shovel blow—continues at a good pace and multiplies the attacks, finally leaving us with one last sample, followed by the final track, Vanans Makt, which offers us a touch of melancholy and Bulten’s Punk energy (Lastkaj 14) meets Death Metal for a surprising composition.
Renowned in the Death Metal scene for its consistency in terms of releases, Paganizer has not slowed down with its new signing! As always, there are some great riffs on As Mankind Rots, and connoisseurs will have no trouble finding them!
85/100