melodic death metal
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Hell yeah, time to punish and torture our neck muscles and vocal cords. Time to crawl to the frontstage, raise our devil horned fists and smash our bodies into one another without remorse. It's summer, usually the time when hell opens open air in stead of inside gritty basements, gloomy bars and smelly venues. Now, I have no idea what it would sound like when you try to kill the well-known Indian peace activist but if it sounds anything like this band, Gandhi doesn't stand a chance.
Killing Ghandi hails from Denmark, founded in 2013. Judging from the sheer quality of this album, the birthyear really is a surprise. For a band that has been in existence for only two years, this quartet comes up with a smashing debut, immediately competing with the likes of Arch Enemy, Soilwork, In Flames, Children Of Bodom and Dimmu Borgir. These bands aren't mentioned by accident because somewhere in between your albums of any of these, Killing Gandhi truly deserves a place.
There's sixteen songs on 'Cinematic Parallels'. Five of them are intros, breathers or in-betweeners (named 'Trailer', short instrumental pieces of ambient or soundscapes which are in fact already pretty interesting changes from the fierce and brutal blend of death and black metal the eleven other songs brings us.
'The Cannibal Course' opens after the first 'Trailer' and immediately shows the musical abilities of this band. Stunning guitar riffs and fierce growls make up for a destructive trip that also reminds me of Machine Head somehow. These non-black or death elements are also present in some of the thrashy guitar solos and give the whole a lot of credibility. 'What Lies Beneath' speeds things up towards a Childen Of Bodom like anthem.
From there the tone is set for a fantastic modern day melodic death metal album with an immense level of songwriting and brutality. Furthermore there are some nice surprises on this album. 'The Lights Will Shine Forever' seems to borrow influences from indie rock, hidden away beneath tons of distortion. 'Only The Strong Survive' has a hardcore approach, mainly in the strong riffs. 'Illusion of Death' reaches back to the golden era of thrash metal.
My favorite song on this album is '0100101101000111', driving on amazing piece of guitar play in the verses and incorporating what sounds like a digitalized female voice in the choruses. Yet, it's a metal album which means that we're banging our heads off in absolute extacy, along with fierce riffs and blasting drums. The use of electronics often comes shining through and it's a brilliant move to incorporate these elements. In closer 'The Next Level' they remind me of Pain.
In all, this is an extremely strong debut, leaving me absolutely stunned. Yet, like so many metal albums, this stuff is mainly written to perform live and that's exactly what I'm hoping for from now on. If Killing Gandhi is as convincing on stage as on CD, we might have a new favorite for many young metal fans and for old bats like me...
Serge
Killing Ghandi hails from Denmark, founded in 2013. Judging from the sheer quality of this album, the birthyear really is a surprise. For a band that has been in existence for only two years, this quartet comes up with a smashing debut, immediately competing with the likes of Arch Enemy, Soilwork, In Flames, Children Of Bodom and Dimmu Borgir. These bands aren't mentioned by accident because somewhere in between your albums of any of these, Killing Gandhi truly deserves a place.
There's sixteen songs on 'Cinematic Parallels'. Five of them are intros, breathers or in-betweeners (named 'Trailer', short instrumental pieces of ambient or soundscapes which are in fact already pretty interesting changes from the fierce and brutal blend of death and black metal the eleven other songs brings us.
'The Cannibal Course' opens after the first 'Trailer' and immediately shows the musical abilities of this band. Stunning guitar riffs and fierce growls make up for a destructive trip that also reminds me of Machine Head somehow. These non-black or death elements are also present in some of the thrashy guitar solos and give the whole a lot of credibility. 'What Lies Beneath' speeds things up towards a Childen Of Bodom like anthem.
From there the tone is set for a fantastic modern day melodic death metal album with an immense level of songwriting and brutality. Furthermore there are some nice surprises on this album. 'The Lights Will Shine Forever' seems to borrow influences from indie rock, hidden away beneath tons of distortion. 'Only The Strong Survive' has a hardcore approach, mainly in the strong riffs. 'Illusion of Death' reaches back to the golden era of thrash metal.
My favorite song on this album is '0100101101000111', driving on amazing piece of guitar play in the verses and incorporating what sounds like a digitalized female voice in the choruses. Yet, it's a metal album which means that we're banging our heads off in absolute extacy, along with fierce riffs and blasting drums. The use of electronics often comes shining through and it's a brilliant move to incorporate these elements. In closer 'The Next Level' they remind me of Pain.
In all, this is an extremely strong debut, leaving me absolutely stunned. Yet, like so many metal albums, this stuff is mainly written to perform live and that's exactly what I'm hoping for from now on. If Killing Gandhi is as convincing on stage as on CD, we might have a new favorite for many young metal fans and for old bats like me...
Serge
