DEMONICAL — Death Infernal (review)

DEMONICAL — Death Infernal album cover Album · 2011 · Death Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3/5 ·
Vehemency
Buzzing and sawing guitars, death reeking growls, morbid atmosphere - yep, pure old school Swedish death metal is once again the name of the game, this time on Demonical’s third full-length offering Death Infernal which doesn’t truly surprise with its music, but since when has that been the point? The album simply showcases how brutal, coffin-like death metal is supposed to be spewed and it’s up to the listener if that’s enough for his musical preferences.

Actually I lie a little when I say that there’s no surprises here. For the most part, as tracks on the first half like the savage ”Ravenous” and the mid-tempo ”Return in Flesh” imply, Demonical stays true to its Entombed influences, but as soon as the seventh song ”All Will Perish (The Final Liberation)" begins, one can notice the evident melodic death metal elements of Amon Amarth, and this continues throughout the last tracks ”Slain Warriors” and ”Darkness Awaits”. The two additional bonus songs retain the same melodic inclination, including the Emperor cover ”Night of the Graveless Souls”.

Delving deeper into the compositions, it must be admitted by everyone that Demonical does know how to craft captivating death metal pieces. This becomes clear right on the first track ”The Arrival of Armageddon” that goes up and down the fretboard with ingenious riffs and on ”Black Inferno” where Bloodbath esque malicious melodies appear in front of the distorted low-pitch instrumentation. Some stagnation is to be found from the album as well but nothing totally fatal that would make the listening experience an annoyance in any way.

Despite that the occasional melodic death elements are somewhat refreshing to hear on an album of this sort, I find those tracks to be the album’s weakest links, as Death Infernal seems to be at its best during the most brutal assaults. To conclude my nagging, the production could be a bit filthier as there’s slight sterileness in the sound, so that it’s not quite like the dirty eponymoys Interment album, for instance. In the end, Death Infernal leaves a positive taste, and is definitely recommendable for the lovers of the genre, and I mean those who still can endure the similar ideas initiated in the early 90s already.
Share this review

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

Hin helga kvöl Atmospheric Sludge Metal
SÓLSTAFIR
Buy this album from MMA partners
The Cycles of Suffering Black Metal
BURIAL OATH
Buy this album from MMA partners
Facilis Descensus Averno Death Metal
SAEVUS FINIS
Buy this album from MMA partners
Merciless Crossover Thrash
BODY COUNT
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us