Decapitated
Carnival Is Forever

"Carnival Is Forever" is the sixth studio album by the Polish death metal band Decapitated. Well, I have to say that initially, I didn't even know this band existed, let's say I stumbled upon them by chance on the Internet, and so I wanted to listen to this latest effort by the band.

2011 was a year when many metal albums were released, such as "Illud Divinum Insanus" by Morbid Angel, "Kairos" by Sepultura, "Unto the Locust" by Machine Head, "Macabre Eternal" by Autopsy, and many others (unfortunately, it wasn't a second 1986)... and then in July of last year, this "Carnival Is Forever" by Decapitated came out.

From what I've gathered, this band was formed in the late '90s by the Kieltyka brothers, and they released no less than five albums before disbanding in 2007 due to a tragic event, namely the drummer Vitek died in a road accident; he was the brother of guitarist Vogg. So, two years after the incident, in 2009, leader Vogg wanted to reform the band and enlisted Kerim Lechner as the drummer, who has excellent skills behind the kit, being fast, precise, and technical, in short, a classic death metal drummer. As a singer, we have "Rasta" Rafal Piotrowski, a big brute who alternates between scream and growl roars, and in live performances, he really knows how to deliver. Finally, as bassist, we have Filip Halucha.

Let's talk about the eight songs on this album; all are supported by the speed of drummer Lechner, Vogg's brutal riffs, and Piotrowski's voice that switches between scream and growl roars. The negative aspect of the songs is that some are repetitive and monotonous and sometimes too forced. Take, for example, the title track, which lasts almost nine minutes and is dreadfully boring, with the opening riff repeating till the end of the song. Another mediocre song is "A View from a Hole," which starts slowly and then unleashes numerous raw riffs, but unfortunately, they are monotonous and bland. Setting aside these two negative songs, you can find the opener "The Knife," which is a real punch in the stomach, ending with a spectacular solo. Then there are "United," "Homo Sum" (which even has a video directed for it), "404," and "Pest," which are more than decent tracks, even if they are a bit repetitive, but they are pleasantly listenable. The album concludes with the instrumental "Silence," dedicated to the death of brother Vitek, and here I asked myself: "Why, after seven total chaos songs (in a positive sense), did they add an instrumental piece with acoustic guitars?" Anyway, it's a good piece.

All in all, "Carnival Is Forever" is a sufficient album, which I mainly recommend to fans of Decapitated, and if you are looking for good, raw, and violent death metal, I suggest you listen to something else.