Tormented

Swedes Tormented return with their sophomore LP, Death Awaits, offering more of what you'd expect: old school Swedish death metal, in the vein of Entombed and Dismember. The full-length follow-up to 2009's Rotten Death picks up where the band's debut left off, featuring 40 minutes of early '90s-style, dirty guitar tones, buzzing rhythms and murky production. The guitar work, which encompasses a variety of structures and cord progressions, dominates Death Awaits, along with Andreas Axelson's powerful vocals. "Blood Orgy" is a bombardment of speedy riffs and raspy, howling vocals, while "I.O.T.D." features a slower pace with intense, heavy grooves and clamouring drums. The brutal "Into the Crypts of Death" contains dark rhythms and abrasive tones, and is layered with an ominous atmosphere that screams early Entombed, which is made even more apparent by the extremely raw production. While Tormented haven't reinvented the wheel with their sound, they manage to pull off their traditional style flawlessly.