UMUR
The Dead End Experiment is the 2nd full-length studio album by Greek death metal act Sickening Horror. The album was released in September 2009 by Soulflesh Collector Records.
The music on the album is technical death metal with a sometimes progressive edge. Technical playing and progressive ideas never get in the way of raw power and brutality though, so first and foremost expect a raw and brutal death metal album. Since the excellent debut album When Landscapes Bled Backwards (2007) drummer George Kollias ( Nile, Cerebrum...etc.) has been replaced by Jose Theodorakis. Fortunately he lifts the heavy heritage with ease. Über fast double pedal work and generally high precision playing. The bass drums are triggered to hell and I´m not too happy about this, but it´s about my only complaint about The Dead End Experiment. George Antipatis handles guitars and vocals and Ilias Daras plays the bass like they did on the debut and they both do a great job. The vocals are brutal and sometimes even eerie sounding. They are pretty varied bearing in mind that they are growls. The basslines and the guitar riffs are technical and challenging and vary between fast riffing and open string chords with a dissonant sound. The dark atmosphere on the album is further enhanced by the occassional sound/ synth effect.
...And the atmosphere on the album actually needs a special mention. It´s one of the things that sets Sickening Horror apart from most other technical death metal acts. The band are capable at creating an eerie, cold and dark atmosphere and hooklines aplenty. The atmosphere on the album makes me think of sick, twisted experiments gone wrong. The Dead End Experiment is a great sophomore album by Sickening Horror and while I wouldn´t say it surpasses the predecessor, it´s just as excellent. Sickening Horror can now be upgraded from promising newcommer to established act. I trust the next album will continue the high quality of the first two. I find The Dead End Experiment highly recommendable and a 4 star rating is well deserved.