ABORTED — Retrogore (review)

ABORTED — Retrogore album cover Album · 2016 · Brutal Death Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
4.5/5 ·
UMUR
"Retrogore" is the 9th full-length studio album by Belgian death metal act Aborted. The album was released through Century Media Records in April 2016. There´s been one lineup change since "The Necrotic Manifesto (2014)" as guitarist Danny Tunker has been replaced by Ian Jekelis. "Retrogore" was preceeded by the "Termination Redux" EP from January 2016, but the material on the EP was not recorded during the same sessions as the material featured on "Retrogore".

Stylistically there are generally very few surprises if you´re already familiar with Aborted´s trademark death metal style. It´s technically well played death metal, featuring loads of tempo changes, melodic solos, and the aggressive snarling and deeper growling vocals by Sven de Caluwé in front. That´s more or less how Aborted have sounded since "The Archaic Abattoir (2005)", but "Retrogore" still stands out a bit more than many of the preceding releases by the band, and that ultimately comes down to more catchy and memorable songwriting. There are some pretty killer tracks featured on the album, which I was able to remember, and in some cases sing/growl along to, after only a few spins ("Whoremageddon" is a good example of that).

Another feature which has been upgraded compared to the last couple of releases is the sound production. "Retrogore" features the most potent and powerful sounding production yet to grace an Aborted album. It´s heavy, raw, and detailed, and provides the best possible conditions for the material to shine. Add to that a technically very well playing band, who deliver their music with great conviction and passion, and we got a winner here.

Variation between tracks has almost always been an issue on previous releases by the band, but "Retrogore" also delivers in that department. Aborted may not have taken a gigant step when it comes to material diversity, and some tracks are still a bit more anonymous than the best songs on the album, but something has definitely happened with the songwriting, which leaves a very positive impression. So upon conclusion "Retrogore" is more or less the Aborted album I´ve been waiting for since the promising "The Archaic Abattoir (2005)". A promise which has taken 11 years and quite a few albums to fulfill, but now it´s finally happened. A 4.5 star (90%) rating is deserved.
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UMUR wrote:
more than 2 years ago
I´m actually not a huge Aborted fan, although I´ve followed them and reviewed most of their releases throughout the years, but this one is great. They´ve really stepped up IMO. There´s a good chance this one will end up in my top 10 for 2016.
Nightfly wrote:
more than 2 years ago
That is good!

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