Horrendous - Anareta

Today when I checked Facebook I saw Albert Mudrian editor of Decibel post something about how Horrendous is the best death metal band from post 2000. Approximately five minutes later I got the Horrendous promo material in my inbox. Figuring it was a sign I turned it up, and I have to say, despite a few petty complaints, I'm pretty damn impressed with what these boys have been able to do on their latest offering - the crushing and strangely terrifying quasi-masterpiece that is Anareta, one of the best death metal albums of the year.

Let's just get this out of the way - Horrendous tackle every side of the death metal spectrum, and that in and of itself is glorious. The cool thing is, they're doing it all through an old school death metal lens which in and of itself is wonderfully tasty. While I do have issues digging into the guitar tone I think the bands overall attack is delicious and the crushing melodic lines on tracks like Acolytes speak to their mastery of their instruments. This is what death metal songwriting should sound like. In a world where we are often let down by our favorite bands Horrendous rise up and grab you by the throat.

Horrendous, more than almost any other band in death metal today truly understand the spirit of the genre and that is a large part of what makes them so great and deliciously vile. You peel back the mask and you find yourself staring into the fucked up face of a band who understand what it means to crush skulls. Fully aware of their own artistry and unafraid to leave you gasping for air Horrendous are old school death metal that works in a twenty first century context. Rather than sounding outdated or silly they come off raw and vicious, so hop on in, the blood is fine!

Find them on Facebook!
www.facebook.com/HorrendousDeathMetal