Vomitory - Opus Mortis VIII

Published May 05 2011

*=Staff's pick	Regorge In The Morgue* Bloodstained* They Will Burn The Dead Awaken Hate In A Time Of War Torturous Ingenious Forever Damned Shrouded In Darkness Combat Psychosis Requiem For The Fallen

Genre	Death Metal	Erik Rundqvist	Vocals
Tracks	10	Urban Gustafsson	Guitar
Runningtime	36 Min.	Peter Östlund	Guitar
Label	Metal Blade	Erik Rundqvist	Bass
Release	23 April 2011	Tobias Gustafsson	Drums
Country	Sweden	-	Keyboard
Producer	Rikard Löfgren
Similar artists	Grave, Torture Division

If there is something we're spoiled with in Sweden it's good death metal. With a scene that makes a great number of people salivate there must be something special about your act if you're going to reach out properly to the listeners. Even if your band is a renowned one that have a pedigree of insane proportions there really isn't any excuse "just" to go on doing what you've always done in the past.

Sweden's Vomitory is one of the greatest death metal bands out there - as they have proved on countless times during their over 20-year long career. It's because of this that I'm somewhat disappointed with their latest offering, Opus Mortis VIII, not that it's particularly bad in any way, but because it feels just too safe. The band seems to be content to pursue the path they have trodden before, and you still get good, well-produced death metal delivered by a band that knows what they're doing. Nothing wrong in this, but I actually demand more from a band like Vomitory that has been in the business for quite some time, than from a band putting out their first record.

As it is now, I get bored half-way through the records as most of the music is too much on autopilot when you're really longing for music where the aggression- and adrenaline levels are pumped up to the absolute max. The refrain in They Will Burn, where singer/basist Erik Rundqvist is shouting that people will burn, they will suffer with a tomb-deep growl seems just bland. Seriously - lyrics like that was passé in 1992 already.

Do I overly whine? It perhaps seems that Opus Mortis VIII is a properly sucking album, but this is not the case. Vomitory does know how to play death metal in a way that also impresses. The technique from the band is top notch, especially Tobias Gustafsson is showcasing the fantastic ability he has as a drummer with either playing superfast or grooving the hell out of his kit. Guitarists Urban Gustafsson and Peter Östlund are playing like madmen at times. I hadn't expected otherwise. But the songs themselves are not as good as I had hoped and feel just too safe for my taste that I won't bring out the higher grades for this record.

Considering the super powers Vomitory have in them, which they have proved by one of the strongest albumstretches from any death metalband, since the debut Raped In Their Own Blood, Opus Mortis is a good but not a great album.

Performance	Originality	Production	Vocals	Songwriting
8	6	9	7	6

Summary
6 chalices of 10 - Martin