Nader Sadek

Egyptian-born, but NYC-based, conceptual artist Nader Sadek is no stranger to the metal world, as he's designed installations and costumes for Mayhem and Sunn0))). In the Flesh marks his first foray into the musical realm, having recruited the death metal super-group of Steve Tucker (Morbid Angel), Flo Mounier (Cryptopsy) and Rune Eriksen (Mayhem). Thematically, it centres on humanity's dependence on petroleum, the liquid from million-year-old life that in return gives life to our world. Beginning with the gargling "Petrophilia," Tucker's depths-of-hell vocals are especially cavernous and chilling in "Of This Flesh (Novus Deus)," and Eriksen is given plenty of room to cast his six-string spells in the stirring "Mechanic Idolatry." His unbridled solos, along with Tucker's double-tracked growls, add another dimension of brutality to "Soulless." The frenetic, Hate Eternal-esque riffing in "Sulffer" is very black metal, punctuated by Eriksen's divergent soloing. Final cut "Nigredo in Necromance" (and its accompanying video) is an instrumental par excellence, lending depth and brooding character to the album. Featuring guest appearances from a slew of metal stars, including Attila Csihar (Mayhem, Sunn O))), Travis Ryan (Cattle Decapitation), and Tony Norman (Monstrosity, Terrorizer), In the Flesh is a regal record, and clocking in under 30 minutes, Sadek knows how to make a death metal album destined for greatness.