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DeicideScars Of The Crucifix Earache/Shock Deicide's Earache debut is the best album they've released in years - although that's not saying much, considering the last few disasters. 'Scars Of The Crucifix' is not quite the return to form it's being hailed as, but fans shouldn't be disappointed. The Floridian death metallers seem to have a new energy this time and have moved beyond some of their previous one-dimensional efforts to something a bit more musically impressive. Benton's vocals are double tracked once more and by picking up the pace a bit in his delivery of his venomous shrieks and guttural bellows he's managed to avoid much of the tired, nursery-rhyme feel which seem to characterise his later vocal approach. But the real stars of this album are the Hoffman brothers. On 'Scars...' they supplement chromatic chaos with more controlled, classic-heavy-metal-type leads. The guitars sometimes sound a bit thin and tinny, but overall, the underproduced sound was probably a wise choice as it lends the album a raw and gritty feel. However, the songwriting is fairly inconsistent and the quality drops off dramatically after the half way point. It's saved by its good songs; monstrous, ferocious tracks like Scars Of The Crucifix, Conquered By Sodom and When Heaven Burns - but at several moments on the album, the material still descend into the beleagured, chugging, sing-a-long style that has made many of Deicide's releases so tedious. For example, the vocal line of Enchanted Nightmare echoes the nursery-rhyme silliness of songs like I Am No One, while the stupidly titled Mad At God is almost as bad. 'Scars Of The Crucifix' is by no means a terrible album (and at under half an hour, it's also mercifully short). Deicide have included a few truly great songs, even if the majority of the album is largely unspectacular. At this stage of their career, Deicide are banking on their past reputation to get them through - and it probably will.  |
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