SUFFOCATION - Souls To Deny

8 songs
38:17 minutes
***** ****
Relapse / Suburban

Bandpage

Death metal may have generated a huge array of popular figureheads, like Morbid Angel, Cannibal Corpse and Obituary, but the genre may never have been played as perfect as by East Coast legends Suffocation. Somehow they never made it to the very top, and a look at their discography also shows major time spans of idleness, as it's been 9 years since the release of Suffocation's last full length album Pierced From Within.

Signed to Relapse Records, Suffocation show that they are still the masters of New York death metal, combining fast paced rhythms with grindcore beats, and adding so many breaks and complex mood swings that the songs can be listened on two albums: either you make it a brutal rocking old school death metal album, or you dive to a deeper level and find some of the most virtuosic death metal compositions ever. Where most bands only excel on one or the other, Suffocation show what this genre is really about: being absolutely and devastatingly aggressive while maintaining an incredibly high level of musical finesse. Although all the songs are equally great, this is best proven by the insane guitars of Demise Of The Clone.

The first time you listen to it, you may only like it, the second time maybe too, but from there on, I promise that it will grow on you. I wouldn't have expected such an awesome album, bu so far, this is the best death metal album of the year 2004.