Brutal Death fans, meet Dichotomy!
The project led by Jordan Vaerla (Lust of Decay, Shuriken Cadaveric Entwinement, In-Conquered, ex-Cesspool of Vermin, ex-Lividity…) immediately signed with Rottweiler Records for its debut album, Lucifer Owns the Fence.
The album kicks off with He Is… and its otherworldly scream before the first riffs kick in, combining technical prowess and ferocity while clearly showcasing influences drawn, without a doubt, from the American scene. While the vocals may come as a surprise at first, they ultimately blend very well with the relentless onslaught and its rhythm changes dedicated to violence; then, with The Antithesis, the musician continues his assault. We note a few more dissonant touches in the relentless rage that constantly pounds us through every instrument, leading into the fairly short but uncompromising What a God, which is also dedicated to pure brutality, sprinkled with a touch of screaming along the way. The Fence takes over with palpable aggression, creating a catchy rhythm where growls reign supreme, accompanying the jagged riffs all the way to Better to Be Drowned with a Millstone Around the Neck, where the musician grants us a very brief respite, followed by the return of full-throttle violence, pounding us relentlessly. No surprises on this track, nor on The Perseverance, which follows suit and continues to strike with a certain complexity in the execution of its uncompromising rhythm section, though we do encounter a few shrill harmonics before moving on to The Greatest Lie Ever Told, where the punishment resumes, with double bass drumming and aggressive riffs trading blows at a brisk pace. We move on to Through Christ We Live, a new composition that will naturally make you bang your head while the musician goes all out on his instruments, then Satan Will Kill You comes to put an end to it with an unhealthy edge to the harmonics, strictly adhering to the principle of brutality begun half an hour earlier and continuing to pay homage to it right up to the very last moment.
If you love uncompromising American-style Death Metal, Dichotomy will easily delight you. Lucifer Owns the Fence isn’t here to revolutionize the genre, but rather to give us nine new reasons to love musical violence.
75/100