Rating: 8.5

Country: UK

Genre: Brutal Death Metal

Record Label: Grindethic Records

Release Date: 2008

Track list:
1. Scales to Measure the Misfortune of Man
2. Disillusion Ethos (Of Torment and My Bleeding Shadow)
3. Blood Simple
4. Dark Eye
5. The Flesh Elemental
6. Born To Bleed (Losing Myself To Silence)
7. Negativity Flux
8. Ills To Which The Flesh Is Heir
9. The Contusions Of Remorse
10. Twilight's Slow Attrition

Total playing time 51:14

Band Website: Detrimentum

Detrimentum - Embracing this Deformity

Jon B - Lead & Rhythm Guitar
Eddie - Bass & Vocals
Jon R. - Drums & Percussion
Paul - Lead & Rhythm Guitar

Detrimentum's overlooked 1999 EP, A Monument to the Suffering, was among my fairly successful try-out purchases and I was eagerly looking forward to their full length effort. Nothing could prepare me for it though, because Embracing this Deformity is light years ahead in comparison. Fuck. This is orchestrated chaos done on a grand scale, leaving virtually no stone unturned and no listener unscathed. From their first wave of attack itself, you are swept away with all your belongings. Rushing forth with the fearsome chaotic fury of early Kataklysm, this UK band indulges in playing technical music that is vaguely comparable to Mutant/Theory In Practice though it's not as over-the-top and doesn't involve keyboards – Detrimentum's toned down intricacy and complexity, comparatively anyway, is made up for with light-speed execution and brutal death metal chunks of say, Prostitute Disfigurement. Strutting about as though they're the descendents of Emperor, Detrimentum are often given a fitting disciplinary martial treatment of Behemoth. The cascade of blasts and majestic texture of the music is strongly reminiscent of Aeternus' Shadows of Old and in some parts I'm even reminded of the inexpressible mystical beast, Lykathea Aflame. It's commendable that even with such diversity, the sound on Embracing this Deformity is cohesive and doesn't sound patchy.

On the face of it, Detrimentum sound like any ambitious brutal death metal band playing senseless technical riffs whilst blasting away relentlessly. Actually, Detrimentum do just that but without the “senseless” bit, which makes a fucking hell of a difference. Without exaggeration, there are a thousand riffs crammed into each of their long songs, but strangely they all serve their purpose albeit a very brief one. Like a shrewd Indian politician attempting to secure votes in a local slum, Detrimentum with their eloquence, sheer power and a definite swagger in their movements make each one of them seem special. Without the slightest hesitation, they are able to effectively change the expression of their music – from an aggressive red-faced one to a sympathetic tear-soaked one – and Detrimentum are convincing at that. They make sure to throw in a few hefty punches from time to time so as to please the brutal rowdies and ensure that they don't slink away, unhappy with the complexity of the situation. But having an agenda, they don't waste their time on a riff or part no matter how good and are constantly progressing, moving over to the next one at a speed that will help them to achieve their huge four figure target in every session, always keeping their momentum intact.

A remarkable feature about this album is without doubt its astral, emotive leads, which sound somewhere between those played by fellow countrymen, Sarpanitum and Mithras. When racing about at supersonic speeds, the music flickers and momentarily transforms to reveal the leads in all their fluttering glory or they suddenly take flight and leave the music rattling below, taking at least a couple of rounds in the air before settling down. Coming after the intense galloping and stampeding that takes place in the first four and a half minutes of “Born to Bleed”, a lead sounding like the neighing of a stallion echoes though the air, and you are almost certain of the imposing creature standing on its hind legs while doing so. Also worth highlighting is the phenomenal drumming by Jon R.; going by the extent of his percussive devastation, he's more like a one man army. Not just a commonplace blasting-hero, his dexterity and application is simply brilliant and he not so much as conforms to the raging music as he leads it through various tempo changes.

Eddie's streamlined porcine vocals may not find favour with everyone, and although I have no reservations with them, save that squeals normally aren't very expressive even with a wide range, their employment seems logical in this case because with the mic in the hands of a lesser vocalist, enunciated growls would probably be too time consuming and would slow down the blur-paced music. As much as you would like to hear more of their brand of music, at over 50 minutes, an album of this nature is a tad too long.

This, my dear readers, is death metal of the future – ultra-fast, brutal, technical and surprisingly, even sentient. Don't stay home without it.

September 14th, 2008