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Rating: It took Ulcerate three years to compose a new album, three years to create “Shrines of Paralysis.” This is the title chosen by the talented New Zealand trio for their latest effort, an imposing, disorienting work that surprises despite its challenging approach. The three musicians decided not to stop, to continue their journey beyond the boundaries of death metal.
Post-death metal, that's how the music created by the band can be defined, a sea of dark and gloomy dissonances, almost impenetrable. An ocean of dense and suffocating hydrocarbons that pushes back the listener with violent and relentless waves, where classic technical and brutal death is one with the post-hardcore assaults of neurosisian memory, aiming to create a huge liquid mass with a devastating impact. Only the most daring listener, who plunges into it with determination, will be able to appreciate all its beauty. When immersed and surrounded by the music, they will finally discover dark melodies, atmospheric moments, and a multitude of details previously hidden. It will only be necessary to abandon oneself without further hesitation.
After all, this already happened with previous albums, but this time the difference lies in the greater melodic search compared to the rougher and more brutal “Vermis.” Melody is a fundamental component of the essence of the songs; it doesn’t simply appear here and there occasionally. It's a bit like the same argument made in this very fine review regarding the comparison between Testament and Metallica in their approach to the now archaic thrash metal of the good old days. In any case, we can affirm that Ulcerate practice what they preach, and they do it brilliantly.
Death metal album of the now past year without a doubt.
PS: In this review, I didn't write the word "rotten" even once, the era of post-death has finally arrived!
Tracklist
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