Necrodeath
Phylogenesis

Sometimes you have to listen to the advice of friends. Because friends care when they see you lost in a sea of shit. And by shit, I mean power metal and the latest Dream Theater albums, which had put me in such a depression that I found myself staring at the mirror for hours, repeating to myself: “But who are you? And who am I?”.

That said, let's move on. The power had literally made everything that it is humanly possible for a human being to turn, spin. Dream Theater had given me the final blow. And so, why continue to suffer? So why not return to the roots?

Let's try something fresh, since it's hot outside... Let's try the latest release from our fellow countrymen, Necrodeath, a band that had left us all in Romania in the company of Count Dracula and the blood-sucking vampires who today have reincarnated into bastard mosquitoes. And speaking of Necrodeath and therefore of Peso and company, it makes me think. A lot.

Examining the album, I realize that we are in the presence of another concept centered, this time, on the theme of the origins of the species. An interesting theme, no doubt, tackled with much "originality" by Necrodeath. 

However, always regarding the band, I must say that I've approached this "Phylogenesis" not without some skepticism, given that the previous releases from the Ligurian combo had not thrilled me that much. Indeed, to be honest, "Draculea" had delivered a band close to the "past its prime" label, while the earlier albums, except for "Mater Of all Evil" (which, however, I don't even consider the masterpiece that's been touted around), showed me a band capable of exploding all their rage, devastation, madness, tenacity, wickedness, technique. In short: a really fit band but, at the same time, a band that filled their albums with bland tracks that ultimately left a bitter taste in your mouth.

In particular, in "Draculea" I had sensed that feeling of "emptiness," of "nothingness," that makes me want to cut down the albums and the band that birthed them. 
Maybe it's because I'm more emotionally attached to the early thrash of the same band, those first two albums that shook the Italian and international scene. In short: that awesome pair of albums dominated by "Fragments Of Insanity," where the thrash-black blend was practically perfect.

Perhaps.

However, I didn't want to judge it prematurely, and I took the new baby of Necrodeath in hand and... I was quite satisfied.

From a musical perspective, the band has finally abandoned that pseudo-thrash that characterized their albums but seemed to me just a mass of so much deafening noise, all smoke and no roast.

To my utmost delight, I find a grand return of Pier Gonnella, who, with his guitar, manages to churn out riffs that seem like divine boulders of God only knows how many tons and fast, melodic, and sharp solos I had practically forgotten. Damn! Solos have finally returned to the tracks. And that excites me quite a bit. Especially in the way they are performed. Especially when behind the guitar, there is an entire wall of musicians executing their work to perfection. 

Peso, what can I say, sounds like a jackhammer, a little man charged with batteries of inexhaustible source. He hammers beautifully, abuses his instrument to exhaustion by alternating extremely fast parts with more meditative and slow, reflective, and paced moments, like in the fantastic conclusive and devastating "Final War".

But it's from the opener that Necrodeath show us the cojones they had locked away in some chest thrown into some point of the ocean. "Awakening Of Dawn" is an excellent calling card that presents Necrodeath in more than brilliant shape with a Peso always in the foreground, hammering fast and then more slowly, inserting different rhythms while always being careful not to miss a beat. The same goes for the excellent Gonnella, from whom we can hear excellent riffs and solos that send me into ecstasy. A great example of speed thrash-black of which Necrodeath are our local dominators. 

But the best is yet to come. And indeed, it is an unsettling bass that introduces us to the next track "I.N.R.I." with a rather... ahem... Leaving the song title aside, I would focus more on the fact that it can be defined as one of the best tracks of the set along with "Propination Of The Gods", the longest track on the record (a good seven and a half minutes), introduced by an acoustic guitar that then lets unleash hell on earth by a band that seems to have a lot to say; a song in which an authentic apotheotic musical fury erupts, with Flegias always in the spotlight. 

In "The Theory", instead, the protagonist is the excellent Gonnella with his guitar. Divine. I add no more. Just like "Extreme Emotional Shock" proves to be claustrophobic, dark, and anguishing. Slow and obsessive, with a singer who roars like a damned soul and those guitar riffs that drag you into a vortex of genuine madness. Madness that then unexpectedly explodes into a masterful solo, short but intense. I finish by mentioning the pyrotechnic "Cloned World", a song in which the band delivers yet another stellar performance.

At this point, all that remains is to make the necessary considerations and draw conclusions.

The first thing I ask myself is: why the hell did Necrodeath have to wait so long to show us the attributes that have always distinguished them but that, it seemed, they had hidden for some strange reason unknown to us and the entire universe? 

Another consideration: many have said that this album was made with a "nose in the air." In the sense that, given the not-so-exciting results of previous releases and, above all, the last album, Peso and his band played the wild card, namely “let's do what we know how to do, taking no risks”. 

Some might blame them for it. Not me. I definitely prefer this over previous “100% Hell,” “Tone(s) Of Hate,” and the latest “Draculea.” Definitely. 

So, quite satisfied, all I can do is recommend you all listen to this new work titled "Phylogenesis" by Necrodeath. An album that I hope has a similarly excellent follow-up. 

But this is only up to Necrodeath to decide.

In the meantime... I'll re-listen to "Persuasive Memory"...