### Desultory: Bitterness

#### 22/06/14 || Dinu

Desultory were one of the original Swedish death metal bands that came out in the early 90s and along with Entombed and Dismember are one of the greats of death metal. “Bitterness” is their second album and its a follow up to their first album “Into Eternity” and “Counting our stars”.

There is not a single wasted moment on this album. Every second is refreshing and I’ve probably played this album about 20 times and I never get tired of listening to it. I got into death metal fairly late. I always had my reservations about the genre. A lot of the songwriting felt stale to me and Desultory not only turned me into a fan but a lifelong admirer no less. I would say this is my favorite death metal album of all time.

Melody gains an upper hand on this album. The thrash influences are gone. The vocals are different. The whole album is complex and the artwork is mesmerizing and gorgeous. The music matches up to the artwork. It is haunting, soulful, and induces dollops of paranoia every time I spin the CD.

The lead guitar on this album is sheer genius. The riffs coil around like a king cobra and leave you gasping for breath. The vocals are fucken cool. The opener “Life shatters” has a lot of Entombed riffs written into it and “Bleeding” is the standout track for me. It is majestic and the riffs are huge and keep slamming you repeatedly like an Iraqi prisoner being waterboarded at Guantanamo.

Horrible metaphors aside, the keyboards on this album are kept at a bare minimum and then the melodies are all guitar based. There are a lot of doom ridden riffs that keep popping up throughout the album. “Bitterness” straddles the fine line between dumbed down American death metal and remains true to its gloomy Swedish roots. The record sounds energetic till the end and the balance it strikes between American death metal while retaining the Swedish Gothenburg flavor makes it a very special addition to the canon.

“Among mortals” is my favorite death metal song of all time. It is everything that I always expected from a death metal song. The lyrics fall into place. The vocals boom out and surround the composition. “Taste of tragedy” is a fine old number with menacing drumming and groovy riffs. “Cold bitterness” is the final track and it simultaneously manages to evoke nostalgia and a feeling of hope. The song is tightly produced and the riffs match up to the drums and the vocals complement the speed.

Bitterness is a bonafide classic. A lot of bands tried to get the act right but failed to do so. Hell, Desultory tried all their career to top this but this is the album that showcases the band at the peak of their prowess. Incredibly powerful stuff and its definitely worth a million listens.

- Information
- Released: 1994
- Label: War Anthem Records
- Website: www.desultory.8k.com
- Band
- Klas Morberg: vocals, guitar
- Stefan Pöge : guitar
- Håkan Morberg: bass
- Thomas Johnson: drums

- Tracklist
- 01. Life Shatters
- 02. Left Behind
- 03. A Closing Eye
- 04. Taste of Tragedy
- 05. Bleeding
- 06. Among Mortals
- 07. Enslaved
- 08. Winter
- 09. Cold bitterness