Search - Flesh Crawl :: Descend Into

Arguably the finest German DM album ever

A Flickering | England | 04/14/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As we entered 1992, the year in which death metal peaked in terms of sheer quantity of quality recordings, an unforgiving cloud formed over southern Germany. Ghouls gathered, preparing to sweep across the land and coat it in death and in chaos. For not only were Atrocity creating their marvellous progressive opus "Longing for Death"; Fleshcrawl were writing this glorious and savage tribute to the soulless.



Fleshcrawl tread the road of doomy death metal upon which the likes of Autopsy and Darkthrone explored in years previous, but rather than tentatively edging forward like a blind man on a diving board (that's not to say the previously mentioned bands can be described as such ;)), they plunge headlong into the unknown with a slab of unnervingly calculated detachment from life and embracement of feral meaninglessness.



The album begins in a heavily ironic fashion; a drum heartbeat pulsing life through a windswept background. Tension gradually grows and, as is the case throughout the album, releases with unfaltering apathy. A melody swirls down the now quick ambience-inducing mechanism of the drums into deconstruction, rolls forebodingly, obdurately and deliberately along a deadened, barren path of prolonged dissonant chords that begin to chug, then resurfaces back into chaos. The album continues this way, relentlessly, without compromise or warmth.



Leadwork is scrawled with delicious emptiness in places, and hits a focused whirl in others. Drums are hollow and cold, and used very effectively whether in doomy passages, blasting sections or accompanying a mid-paced chug. The growls are, well... they're bloody awesome. The guitar tone is quite sludgy and `heavy' enough to rip off your bollocks. The melodies themselves are fairly Swedish in style, yet if anything more effective than the masters from that country.



One of the best three DM albums from Germany, along with Atrocity's "Longing For Death" and Golem's "Eternity: The Weeping Horizons". Acquire or expire!"