UMUR
"Moratoria" is the second full-length studio album by Dutch death/thrash metal act Decision D. The album was released through Crypta Records in 1993. It´s the successor to "Razón de la muerte" from 1992. Decision D formed in 1986 and released the "Testimony of Faith" demo in 1990 and the "Testimony on Stage" live demo in 1991 before being signed for the release of "Razón de la muerte".
While "Moratoria" continues the blueprint which was laid down on "Razón de la muerte", which is technical thrash metal with death metal traits, the death metal side of their sound has become the dominant one on "Moratoria" where lead vocalist Edwin Ogenio predominantly growls or uses a throaty semi-growling vocal style (but quite a few tracks also features a higher pitched screaming extreme metal vocal style). He occasionally goes completely bananas though with vocal sections which sound like they were recorded at the local bedlam. Screams, moans, singing/talking...etc. It´s a totally schizophrenic vocal delivery (listen to the closing section of "Social Darkness" and the vocals on "Statues of Deliberation" for proof of that). There´s no arguing that the vocals are the more unique feature of the album, but they are pretty surely also very much an aquired taste.
The instrumental part of the music is incredibly well played and the technical level of playing is very high. The tracks have become a little more memorable and concise since the debut and that´s a big plus in my book, as I felt the debut was a little all over the place and therefore inconsistent in the songwriting department. The sound producion on "Moratoria" is powerful, detailed, and well sounding. I´m not a huge fan of the clicky bass sound, but at least the bass is audible. Upon conclusion "Moratoria" is a nice step forward since "Razón de la muerte", and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is fully deserved (and maybe even a little too low).