Rating: 6.7

Country: USA

Release Date: 2006

Track list:
1. Intro
2. Hemorrhoidal Flare Up
3. Given Up for Dead
4. Vitality
5. Drinkin' Embalming Fluid
6. Belligerence
7. Pipe Wrench Bludgeoning
8. Tearing through Flesh [mp3]
9. Power Sanded Sackless
10. Locked In a Morgue Drawer
11. Untitled

Band Website: Vitality

Vitality - Voracious Malignity

Phil Holland - Vocals
Jeff Hernandez - Guitar
Robert Moore - Guitar
Anthony Walker - Drums

Ok, so here we have Vitality, a Death Metal band from Texas. I could almost end the review right there and achieve the same effect as writing three or four paragraphs. I think most everybody knows exactly what to expect from the Lone Star state these days. Don't get me wrong here, 'cause Texas has been responsible for it's fair share of absolutely levelling Death Metal discs in recent years. Between Insidious Decrepancy, Putrilage, and Infernal Dominion, there's no shortage of gut-churning brutality. However unfortunate it may be, Vitality's debut for Comatose Music, 'Voracious Malignity' is not of that caliber. All in all, it was a bit of a task for me to sit through the entirety of this record. They hit the mark in a few spots, but too often fall short of standards set by their peers. Perhaps it's not entirely fair to judge one band based on another, but when the press kit states that the band you're hearing consists of former/current members of two of the most widely revered acts to emerge from an utterly saturated scene, it's needless to say... difficult. What's more, when virtually every band within said 'scene' is interchangable in terms of actual musical output, it's even more difficult not to hold one to the Death Metal status quo. Vitality are not ignorant to this fact, as demonstrated by their ability to move outside of the 'blast, gurgle, slam, repeat' mold at times. I have to commend them for this. Vitality have one foot forward, and the other one shackled to the archetype of Brutal Death Metal. Thus, the end result is what sounds like a musical tug-of-war. They're trying to fit ten pounds of shit into a five pound bag.

On the plus side, Vitality manage to handle their instruments very well, demonstrating heaps extremely tight riffery, some speedy and fluid drumming and basswork, and a vocal performance you would expect from Prophecy's frontman Phil Holland. This particular group do possess the potential to pen an astoundingly heavy album in the very near future. There's a multitude of really great ideas here, and as I said before, they're certainly competent musicians, they just need to focus a bit more. Cohesion is key. If they can streamline the sound a bit on the next record, I think Vitality could be a true force to be reckoned with. Listening to the outburst in the song "Belligerence" at 2:40 makes this painfully obvious. Another positive aspect of 'Voracious Malignity' would have to be the production. It's thick and organic. Aside from a slightly annoying snare drum tone (which plagues many a Death Metal recording), they've got a spot-on mix here, and I wouldn't do much to change it. As with all current Comatose releases, 'Voracious Malignity' sports a pretty nifty layout and design job again, courtesy of Steve Green at Diabolic Design, and original artwork by Corey Lofton.

All of the problems I have with Vitality's debut can be easily rectified with a little bit more attention to the flow of the song, and less attention on the "Let's see how many riffs we can fit into three minutes" mentality they seem to have at this point. These guys are professionals, have the background, and they seem to be moving in the right direction. I'm not totally sold on this one, but I'm eager to see what the next one holds in store for us. This won't be the last we hear from Vitality, rest assured. I just hope their next album doesn't sound like the untitled hidden track at the end of this album. Anyone remember the album closer to Gemisuadi's 'The Inevitable Contingency'? or Cinerary's 'Rituals Of Desecration'? Yeah? You get the idea.

March 21st, 2006