The heavyweights of slamming death metal are at it again, with a hulking mass of overwhelming antagonism in Obscene Majesty. The prime directive remains consistent with Devourment's past discography — a relentless drive to shred the listener to dust beneath their ceaseless torrent of brutality — but with little else to offer in the way of diversity.
Obscene Majesty marks Devourment's fifth full-length album, proof of the enduring legacy the band have enjoyed within their own niche scene, but also reflects the unapologetic, unflinching nature of the brutal/slam death metal sub-genre as a whole.
Obscene Majesty makes no compromises to satisfy the outsider or please a wider audience. This is heaviness taken to an almost ridiculous extreme, and yet another slab of what Devourment fans will undoubtedly recognize and devour.
The ignorant blasting ferocity on tracks like "Arterial Spray Patterns" approaches the nonsensical in its sporadic application, as the ever-present, blunt force trauma of the chugging guitars rebounds off the listener like a brick. Vocalist Ruben Rosas's gutturals permeate like a miasma, rarely letting up as they spew scenes of depravity.
But by the halfway point on Obscene Majesty, lines between tracks seem blurred, and one feels a monotony in the brutality that is overstaying its welcome. Rarely does a distinguishable riff surface out of the chunky stew of heaviness, and Rosas's vocals never flinch from their singular, vomitous tone.
Obscene Majesty will likely satisfy those already steeped in the putrid churn of the brutal/slam style, but drags on to a point of fatigue that even fans might experience.
(Relapse)Obscene Majesty marks Devourment's fifth full-length album, proof of the enduring legacy the band have enjoyed within their own niche scene, but also reflects the unapologetic, unflinching nature of the brutal/slam death metal sub-genre as a whole.
Obscene Majesty makes no compromises to satisfy the outsider or please a wider audience. This is heaviness taken to an almost ridiculous extreme, and yet another slab of what Devourment fans will undoubtedly recognize and devour.
The ignorant blasting ferocity on tracks like "Arterial Spray Patterns" approaches the nonsensical in its sporadic application, as the ever-present, blunt force trauma of the chugging guitars rebounds off the listener like a brick. Vocalist Ruben Rosas's gutturals permeate like a miasma, rarely letting up as they spew scenes of depravity.
But by the halfway point on Obscene Majesty, lines between tracks seem blurred, and one feels a monotony in the brutality that is overstaying its welcome. Rarely does a distinguishable riff surface out of the chunky stew of heaviness, and Rosas's vocals never flinch from their singular, vomitous tone.
Obscene Majesty will likely satisfy those already steeped in the putrid churn of the brutal/slam style, but drags on to a point of fatigue that even fans might experience.