UMUR "Disposal of the Dead / Dharmata" is the 5th full-length studio album by German death metal act Defeated Sanity. The album was released through Willowtip Records in July 2016. While it is considered a full-length studio album, "Disposal of the Dead / Dharmata" is actually more like two EP releases compiled into one full-length album release. The first part of the album (track 1 - 6), which is titled "Disposal of the Dead", features Konstantin Lühring on vocals (who also sang on the band´s 4th full-length studio album "Passages into Deformity (2013)", but who left Defeated Sanity after recording his parts for this project), while the second part of the album (track 7 - 11), which is titled "Dharmata", features Max Phelps (Cynic, Death DTA, Exist) on vocals. The two parts of the album were recorded at two seperate sessions.

And let me establish right away, that it´s not only the two vocalists who sound vastly different (Konstantin Lühring deliveres unintelligible brutal growling, while Max Phelps has a more snarling aggressive delivery, not far removed from Chuck Schuldiner´s (Death, Control Denied) vocal style), it´s certainly also in the instrumental department, that the music on the two parts of the album is very different sounding.

The first part of the album features the band´s "regular" brutal and technically well played death metal style. It´s downtuned, dark, and very brutal. The sound production is quite original with a distinct sounding guitar tone, and a relatively odd drum sound. Especially the latter is to my ears a bit of an issue. The snare drum features quite an annoying sound, which makes it almost impossible not to focus on it, and I´m having a hard time getting a complete listening experince, when the snare drum sounds so detached from the rest of the instruments. The growling vocals aren´t that interesting either. Very deep, low in the mix, and completely unintelligible. Add to that material that aren´t particularly original sounding, and the "Disposal of the Dead" part of the album comes off as decent but relatively standard brutal technnical death metal. The only track on that part of the album which stands out a bit is the heavy "The Bell".

The second part of the album as mentioned features a completely different sound. It sees Defeated Sanity playing an early- to mid 90s influenced technical/progressive death metal style. Artists like Death, Atheist, Cynic, and Sadist come to mind at various points during the "Dharmata" part of the album. Atmospheric jazzy parts, razor sharp technical death/thrash riffs, advanced guitar solos, fusion influenced rhythms, and an aggressive snarling vocalist in front. The material is adventurous, intriguing, and powerful. Defeated Sanity definitely proves to be more than capable of playing this style of music, and while I´m trying to avoid sounding too disrespectful, I can´t help wonder why they spend their time playing what they do on the "Disposal of the Dead" part of the album, when they can deliver what they do on the "Dharmata" part of the album in such a convincing manner. This is high quality technical/progressive death metal and it´s definitely recommended to fans of the above mentioned references. The sound production is very different sounding from the "Disposal of the Dead" part of the album, and suits the technical/progressive material perfectly.

Upon conclusion "Disposal of the Dead / Dharmata" is quite an interesting release by Defeated Sanity, especially when taking into consideration that both parts of the album were recorded by the same lineup (except on the lead vocalist spot), although it feels more like a split release, featuring two completely different artists. That´s quite the achievement in my book and proves beyond any doubt the high level compositional skill of the band. On the other hand it doesn´t tell us much about who they are as an artist or where they are heading in the future. As an album "Disposal of the Dead / Dharmata" is obviously also stylistic inconsistent and therefore has a very different flow than most full-length releases. It´s up for discussion if that´s a good or a bad thing. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Prelude to the Tragedy" is the debut full-length studio album by German death metal act Defeated Sanity. The album was released in November 2004 by Grindethic Records.

The music on the album is brutal and technically well played death metal and a nod towards Suffocation isn´t all wrong. The brutal growling vocals are more or less indecipherable ( not as ridicously so as on the two next albums though). The lyrics are the rather typical gore themed lyrics that most brutal death metal acts seem to favour. So all in all there are not much on this album that sets itself apart from the thousands of other brutal death metal releases out there.

The playing is tight and convincing, the production is powerful ( albeit pretty standard for the genre), but even though the 8 track album is only 31:35 minutes long it doesn´t take more than a couple of tracks before my attention wanders. The songs simply sound too much the same.

When that is said I still prefer this debut over the next two albums by the band and on occassion when I want to listen to a really brutal death metal release the album comes on. It´s seldom it stays on for the duration of the album though. For that it´s too one-dimensional. A 3 star rating is warranted.

UMUR "Psalms of the Moribund" is the 2nd full-length studio album by German death metal act Defeated Sanity. The album was released in March 2007 by Grindethic Records.

The music on the album is US influenced brutal death metal. Especially early Suffocation comes to mind when listening to the album. The extremely brutal and undecipherable nature of the growling vocals makes that part of the music a bit monotone to my ears, but fans of the genre might find enjoyment here I don´t. Defeated Sanity are a very well playing act and you´ll find plenty of brutal and at times semi-technical riffing on the album. The songs have a tendency to sound much the same though and it´s a problem for me that a 29:06 minute long album becomes tiring after only a couple of songs because the search for ultimate brutality seems more important than memorability. The lyrics are pretty typical blood´n´gore themed lyrics, so nothing too interesting there either.

So all in all a very professional and well played brutal death metal album with some serious flaws, that makes it really hard to enjoy all the way through if you like your death metal with a little variation. This is brutality for the sake of it and you´ll need a few more tricks up your sleeve to impress me. A 2.5 - 3 star rating is warranted.

UMUR Chapters Of Repugnance is the 3rd full-length studio album by German death metal act Defeated Sanity. The album was released in May 2010 by Willowtip Records. Defeated Sanity received a lot of positive criticism for their 2nd full-length studio album Psalms of the Moribund (2007), so Chapters Of Repugnance was an album many people had high expectations to.

The music on the album is US influenced brutal death metal ( Early Suffocation is my first thought). The vocals are particularly brutal and completely undecipherable. They vary between deep guttural growling and various processed forms of growls. The music is quite acrobatic when it comes to tempo changes which happens just about every second or so. Blast beating, then fast playing, blast beating again, then a heavier section. One of the assets of the album is the high level of musicianship in display. One of the lowpoints is how the musicians chose to spend their talents. I don´t lie if I say that the 31:53 minute long album feels like an eternity to me. There´s not a single hook or memorable part to hold on to. This is where I think brutality becomes almost ridiculous. Especially the vocals. They are extremely monotone and without any form of emotion on display they just become an annoying noise on top of the technically well played death metal underneath. Compared to Psalms of the Moribund, I´d say very little has happened and I´m sure fans of that album will greatly enjoy this one too. I´m told there´s a new lead vocalist on Chapters Of Repugnance, but I promise you it´s not audible ( for better or worse depending on your point of view). The lyrical concept hasn´t changed since the last album either. We´re still treated to some pretty generic blood´n´gore themed lyrics.

The production is powerful and suits the music well, so no issues there.

Chapters Of Repugnance is, for it´s genre, a professional and well played album. The problem with the most brutal forms of death metal is that artists playing the style have a tendency to sacrifice memorability over brutality. The irony is that albums like these are so packed with brutal down-tuned riffs and growling vocals, that the dynamics that create brutality are completely lost in monotony. It´s become a race on who can produce the most brutal death metal album ever. That´s also how I feel about this album. So this one might deserve a 3.5 star rating for some of its professional qualities, but there are simply too many things I don´t enjoy about it to warrant such a high rating. I´d say a 2.5 - 3 star rating is more fair. Stop the competition, quit the processed vocals ( yes I wan´t to hear that you spat blood after each rehearsal before I´m satisfied) and write some memorable riffs and you might still have the chance to win over this reviewer.