UMUR
"Misanthropic Hallucination" is the debut full-length studio album by US, Colorado based death metal act Prophecy of Suffering. The album was independently released in October 2020. Prophecy of Suffering was formed in 2018 by brothers Jamison and Mitchell Parker after the split-up of their previous act Chaotic End. The duo are responsible for playing all instruments and performing all vocals on "Misanthropic Hallucination".
Stylistically the material on the 10 track, 45:49 minutes long album is brutal death metal, delivered in a raw and technically well played fashion. The riffs are fast and brutal, and the drums follow suit, but Prophecy of Suffering play slower and more heavy parts too. The vocals are completely unintelligible and there´s little emotion of any kind in the performance. It´s just an animalistic low growl all the way through the album. The material are not particularly original and there is an issue with lack of variation too. It´s the kind of album, where every song sounds exactly the same, and only a few tracks into the album my attention begins to wander. I´ve heard every trick used on the this album before, and I´ve heard them much, much better.
In addition to the mediocre brutal death metal songwriting and (granted) decent musicianship, the sound production is below standard for the genre. It sounds like a home made demo recording the band opted to release in album format, and upon conclusion "Misanthropic Hallucination" is not an album I can recommend. I have nothing against artists and releases predominantly focusing on brutality or aggression, but there has to be at least some moments during a release that are catchy or memorable (a riff, an atmosphere enhancing part, or maybe a vocal phrase), and unfortunately there´s nothing on this album I remember after it has finished playing other than how one-dimensional it is. A 2 - 2.5 star (45%) rating is warranted.