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A strong debut from the band, but varied greatly in atmosphere.-
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| Horrendous: The Chills |
Death Metal
Dark Descent Records
January 2nd, 2012
- The Womb - 5:25
- Ripped to Shreds - 3:32
- Altars - 3:22
- The Somber (Desolate Winds) - 5:01
- Fleshrot - 3:40
- The Ritual - 4:47
- Fatal Dreams - 5:24
- Sleep Sickness - 1:26
- The Eye of Madness - 9:11
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| Review Information |
Release length: 41:48
Review posted on December 26th, 2011
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| | Overall Score: 8.5/10 |
 
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Back in 2009, I was given the chance to review Horrendous's 2009 demo Sweet Blasphemies. This was a limited release through Dark Descent Records as a professional cassette demo, which I promptly ordered and still have tucked away for collector's sake, as well as because I was genuinely impressed by what I heard. It's been two years since the demo was released, and it appears Dark Descent has kept the band on board to issue the debut Horrendous full-length, The Chills. With a stronger financial backing behind the recording, or at least what sounds like it, and plenty of positive feedback to fuel this group's motivation, does The Chills manage to show the group growing? Or, is this a debut that doesn't quite live up to the somewhat rawer sounding demo?
Well, as stated, The Chills definitely doesn't have that much of a lower audio quality compared to their demo. The audio here definitely feels thick and a bit on the rough side, giving it a sound that's far from too modern and clean. This allows the much darker tone of the music to really come to the top layer of the mix. The guitars have a rich distortion that is clearly tuned down pretty low to compliment the already deep bass guitar presence. There are times where the leads can be a little cleaner, but these are largely for guitar solos and when certain effects are used, such as towards the end of "The Somber (Desolate Winds)" where the guitar kind of rings out through an echo effect with a different cleaner distortion used. The vocals are presented in a rather sickening manner, similar to what one might expect from Autopsy or similar acts. While still giving a growling performance, the pitch is much higher and comes off sounding hopeless and haunting, something that compliments the guitar solos well on some tracks when it has a matching shift of atmosphere that suits the rest of the dark and bludgeoning material. The drumming sounds pretty solid as well, especially from the snares that come off just that but with a nice level to them that they don't drown anything out. The kicks have a solid and vibrant click to them while the cymbals crash away dominantly, all working together nicely to assert the rhythm of the old-school Death Metal sound deep into the skull of the listener, whether willingly on the participants side of things, or against their will.
The dirtier sound of this album showcases how creepy the music can be at times right from the very start. Instead of an introduction track, "The Womb" opens up with an extended instrumental start that feels chilling before the haunting atmosphere of the album kicks in full swing. The amount of energy brought in actually sets a bit of a different tone to this track that doesn't really reflect the rest of the album, as this song feels more like a traditional Swedish Death Metal track. The vocals here also feel a little less on the disgusting side and more commanding, again being common to the style, as well as pushed in the background a bit. It's a nice wake up to the listener and can get him or her braced, but in an overall scheme it doesn't really do the album much justice. The guitar solo works well to bring out that haunting, creepier sound, and the slowing pace that closes the track out wraps it all up nicely. "Ripped to Shreds" carries the same kind of more traditional vibe to it, but there's a lot more intensity behind the music right from the very start. The vocals seem to come through a little better, as well as just sound a lot filthier this time around, but it's the snares and kicks of the drum kit really assert their dominance over everything else and force you to bang your head right along with them. There are some really great guitar chords that do make their way through loudly at times during some of the more chaotic moments that add a nice additional aggressive edge to the music, and a good deal of slower moments that feel natural thanks to some well executed transitions. There's also a good deal of what seems to be tighter and more technical execution towards the end of the song that, added into the pure brutality the band brings with them this time around, is simply impressive to behold prior to winding down the song to a slower fade out.
That intensity carries over nicely into "Altars." Again, the bass kick is really the driving force behind the song with catchy clicks that establish a strong rhythm you can't help but want to head bang along to. But the atmosphere here feels very driven with a grim touch to it, varying between a fast pace and mid-tempo throughout the track, establishing that disgusting and darker atmosphere a lot better then the previous two, and getting the listener ready for the sickening vocals of "The Somber (Desolate Winds)" and it's far creepier environment. The song stands nicely as one of the best offerings of the album, and implements a great deal of variety to the song thanks to successful transitioning in and out of slower paced material that also finds a heavy echo effect on the vocals that make them sound more ghastly then simply sickening in the raspier guttural tone. The guitar solo here even establishes a rather depressing emotional push during the slower section of the song to really grab the listener on a completely different level then anything else on here really manages to do.
From here, the album varies in that sickening sense, and can often go into a more traditional yet haunting Death Metal sound. This is far from a bad thing though, as it still leads to some catchy and well done music. "The Ritual" has a decent amount of atmosphere to it that makes it stand out a little more than "The Womb" or "Ripped to Shreds," especially towards the end as the pace slows down and becomes a little more burdening and hopeless. But, then you are given "Fatal Dreams" which feels more like a contemporary Swedish Death Metal track that really has no faults to it, or even feels generic in any way, but far from what the band offers on songs like "Altars" and "The Somber (Desolate Winds)." There's also "Sleep Sickness" which sounds like an old seventies or eighties keyboard driven b-movie Horror theme. The distortion added to it really gives the song a bit of a unnerving tone, and it's slower pace nicely pushes that atmosphere. But, of all the songs, "The Eye of Madness" is one of the more impressive next to "The Somber (Desolate Winds)." This is largely because of the band's ability to keep the nine and eleven minute song fresh from start to finish. There's also some more chilling moments to be found, such as the layered echoing vocals during the first slower part of the song that again bring in a ghastly approach, and a rather emotional guitat solo that follows that up shortly after.
The Chills really didn't come off too unique an offering, though it does have plenty of tracks that provide a good or phenomenal atmosphere and a bit of a sickening vocal performance here and there. But, when that type of environment wasn't at play, the album did end up playing host to a collection of songs that didn't feel like generic Swedish Death Metal, but still followed the traditional foundations close enough that it didn't feel as unique as it could have been, though still turned out pretty good. Horrendous is a strong Death Metal band, and this debut full-length really shows their strengths well. But, at the same time, it reveals that while the band was ready for this release and a label deal, there's still room for the band to grow and mature their sound. If you enjoy any previous Swedish Death Metal groups, or even had the opportunity to check out their demo, there's no denying that The Chills will be an album you will enjoy.
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Digital review copy of this release provided by:
Dark Descent Records
via Clawhammer PR. |
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