Deicide’s last album “The Stench of Redemption” was a smash-mouth punch in face when it comes to death metal, but if for any reason it didn’t ignite in you the least bit of headbanging, then I guarantee you Vital Remains’ latest offering “Icons of Evil” will most definitely give you a glimpse of hell.
Following the tradition of their albums, “Icons of Evil” is full of fast paced, technical death metal anthems that are among some of the best ever written by the band. The band focuses on blending traditional death metal with their own trademarks; some of these are relentless blast beats accompanied by melodic licks that are thrown over break-neck pace riffs, creating a wall of sound to back up Glen Benton’s vocal performance. The songs pack a wallop of blast beats, riffs, growls, blasphemy and skill; all thrown at the listener with the intensity of a freight train. Now, all the mayhem you hear on this album only makes sense when one realizes how unique each song is. “Icons of Evil” is a lengthy affair, the songs vary between six and nine minutes in length but it only adds to a great listening experience. Each one of these behemoths of songs is laden with enough twists and turns to make the listener pay close attention. This is one album where if you don’t listen closely you will most certainly loose track of what the band is trying to accomplish.
It’s hard to pick one song that stands out because all of them are more than capable of holding their ground. The fast back and forth riffs of the title track are hard to forget, equally difficult to forsake is the melodic interlude in the middle of “Scorned”. The classical guitars heard in “Reborn…the Upheaval of Nihility” are almost ethereal and Glen Benton pretty much nails each performance with enough attitude and seriousness to give each song a unique personality.
“Icons of Evil” is one of those hard to find gems that could easily be passed of as nothing new, but the truth is when a refried genre like death metal is played with such excellence it becomes almost impossible to stop listening.
