### Oath To Vanquish: Applied schizophrenic science

#### 05/02/07 || Lord K Philipson

A 3-piece from Lebanon playing death/grind? Wow, that’s a first. And probably the last. We all know I’m not a huge fan of said style. So why am I reviewing it? Becoz no one on staff would touch it with a 10 foot penis so I was stuck with it in the end, though I have far more important things to do. Like not listening to death/grind from Lebanon.

But hey, Oath To Vanquish aren’t as fuck-bad as you’d expect them to be, being from Lebanon and all (not exactly the one country you think of when it comes to death/grind, we all know that’s Malta). It’s not like these guys will enter the grind charts anytime soon but hey, you can’t blame a band for at least trying.

Oath To Vanquish are blessed with a poor production (though their website states that “mixing and mastering was handled by Colin Davis at Imperial Mastering, which has helped to deliver crushing production values that do justice to the songs”) that leaves alot to wish for. That, and I’m not even sure this is a drummer playing (though they list one) as the sounds definitely reek of programmed drums. That, and it sounds like shit. No power, no crunch, no groove.

How much can one elaborate when it comes to death/grind? Not much, I tells thou. There’s a few Morbid Angel vibes in here with the slower parts, though not nearly as good. Some of the vocals sounds like something off a Nasum album, though not as fierce and vicious. A few semi-catchy riffs appear here and there but in the long run it’s not even close to justify a full listen to this album.

This is nothing I recommend since there are literally 5 or 6 other bands in the scene doing this a hella lot better, and with a better production. And yes, most of those bands hail out of Sweden, of course.

Nah, this is not for me, nor for you. But the best tune, “Sulphuric semen”, holds a short’n‘sweet orchestral part as well as a pretty cool melodic ending to it. That’s always something.

3,5 out of 10.

- Information
- Released: 2006
- Label: Grindethic Records
- Website: www.oath-to-vanquish.com
- Band
- Cyril: bass, vocals
- Elias: guitars, vocals
- Carlos: drums, vocals

- Tracklist
- 01. Pear of Anguish
- 02. Dearly Beheaded
- 03. Funeral in F Sharp
- 04. Executive Onslaught
- 05. Toxic Bowel Manoeuvre
- 06. Sulphuric Semen
- 07. Symptoms of Accrued Transgression
- 08. Sorrow in Adornment
- 09. Coat-hanger Massacre