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ALCHEMY OF FLESH “By Will Alone”
ALCHEMY OF FLESH “By Will Alone”
By Dr. Abner Mality
This record is described as pure Florida death metal worship and an antidote to “the overwhelming Swede-death aping or primitive caveman worship of many of the modern death metal bands”. That pretty much nails it right on the head because ALCHEMY OF FLESH bows deeply at the altar of early MORBID ANGEL, MONSTROSITY, MALEVOLENT CREATION and the like.
What makes it more astonishing is that the “band” is basically one man, Tim Rowland, who does EVERYTHING on this disc...bass, lead, drums, vocals, songwriting. At every single step of the way, this sounds like the work of a full-fledged band. The production would get a swoon from Scott Burns himself...it has the dry harshness of the old Florida days and none of the fat, bass-heavy sound so many modern bands favor. But it’s more than just the production, it’s the songs themselves that elevate things. The album is an onslaught of appealing riffs from start to finish and the music is technical without being overly progressive. The track “Earth Dragon Totality” ends with an awesome flowing chord progression that grabs your brain and doesn’t let go. But the apogee has to be “An Erratic Existence”...MORBID ANGEL themselves would be hard put to match this maze of ripping riffs and leads.
Rowland’s voice also matches up with the material and his bass and drum playing keeps up with the relentless guitar. This is one of the best records in this style to come along in the 21st century and would have fit in great around 1992. That being said, it’s not mere nostalgia...it’s pure death metal intensity!
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