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Defeated Sanity: Passages into deformity

21/03/13 || The Duff

One promising debut of brutal tech death followed by two flawless, peerless death metal records, Germany’s Defeated Sanity have a reputation of being a powerhouse forerunner in the scene. Three years since “Chapters of Repugnance”, they are back with a new vocalist (Koni of Despondency), but otherwise the members remain as well as the recipe with more of a straightforward bent in the form of old school Suffocation, Gorguts and Disgorge.

They’ve upped the tech on this record as well, where on “Psalms of the Moribund” we had technical but well-rounded, go with the flow, here we have sporadic jazz that was hinted at on “Chapters”, tastefully I might add despite veering off, but here splurges full-on into the listener’s face. We are talking thick wads of muso cum here, but also, strangely given the absurd excess of the past two records, all melanged with the band’s most straightforward style since the debut.

This of course gives no shortage of space for virtuosos Jacob and Lille, bass-player and drummer respectfully, to sprint ahead of the rest in their own nifty solo spots, filling out the tracks with mini-musical interludes, flourishing but a bit excessive (most notably the drum solo at the end of “Martyrium”, which ties off the album beautifully but leaves me questioning what I’m listening to), and then a guitar solo in “Verses of Deformity” to match those of classic-era Suffocation.

In so far as making brutal death metal, straying from the path is far from this band’s list of priorities. The slick n’ thick production of “Chapters” may’ve been geared towards a more streamlined death metal outfit, but here, it is razor sharp, bludgeoning, an almost focused mess where instruments feel they could peel apart at any moment. It is a mix of flimsy and deadly-accuracy, a professionalism and understanding of their instruments most will never attain all delivered in razor-sharp barbarity, cut-throat fuzz.

The breakdowns are a mix of the last two albums, where we have some of the memorability of “Psalms” and the slam-heavy of “Chapters”; it is in the balance of jazz, crushing and old-school that this record has found a very comfortable mix. Combined with a production that is bass-heavy, with dry, ugly, buzzsaw guitars, it makes for a brutal beast indeed.

This said, I cannot help but feel the band is taking a step back, becoming less remarkable, even with the ambitious “Perspectives” which has several moments of genius merged with quite regular. At 00:46, for example, the music descends into horribly lackadaisical (or as with 0:28, 2:24 or 3:57 of “The Purging”), but even despite this the track is generally quite sloppily assembled and overdrawn.

As for the departure of AJ Magana of Disgorge fame, Koni is a fitting replacement while matching this band’s newfound vinegar, a quest for the vile (the sample at the end of “Lusting for Transcendence” has my stomach turning each and every time – I urge you picture someone giving a blowjob, as it helped deter from the fact it sounds like someone eating a plate-full of shit; add to this the end of “The Purging” – I’m fairly certain it is never good when the Germans say “maneuren”); they have upped their performances in every category the vocals no exception to this newfound style for the band, and AJ does still make guest appearances to boot alongside other guest-vocalists such as Frank Rini and Brian Forgue.

This is probably, in all seriousness, in the top ten heaviest albums I’ve heard, including “Psalms of the Moribund” and “Consume the Forsaken”, it is just underwhelming in parts, too linear where “Chapters…” and “Psalms…” crush with exceptionally intricate arrangements.

It is a masterful record in many ways, it is Defeated Sanity mixing a more honed version of excessive and a more blunt approach; musically a perfect record, but I feel that, with the exceptions of “Naraka” and “Verblendung” (tracks revealing the band’s knack for bullheadedly taking death metal forward), in the majority this is too clean-cut when its two predecessors are BDM fine-dining.

8,5

Information
Released: 2013
Label: Willowtip
Website: Defeated Sanity MySpace
Band
Konstantin Lühring: vocals
Christian Kühn: guitars
Jacob Schmidt: bass
Lille Gruber: drums

Tracklist
01. Initiation
02. Naraka
03. Verblendung
04. Lusting for Transcendence
05. The Purging
06. Verses of Deformity
07. Perspectives
08. Frenzy
09. Martyrium

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