Immolation – Majesty and Decay
Nuclear Blast Records – 2010
By Adam McAuley
Another storming album is on offer by the veterans
Immolation who just continuously prove themselves to be at the top of their class. There are certainly some similarities to be found between this and recent material, but I liken the album slightly more to the raging
Close to a World Below than recent material like
Shadows in the Light. The band’s nihilistic vision shows its full force on
Majesty and Decay as they completely pummel the listener on 10 of the 12 tracks present, excluding the intro and interlude.
We can see the band play with quite a bit of ferocity, though they definitely add in versatile elements as well. This is still more crushing than some of their other latest albums, however. The absolutely astonishing “A Glorious Epoch” is a highlight with its cascading riffs and somewhat epic sounds. There is no filler to be found as everything lives up to a high standard. The closing inferno of "The Comfort of Cowards" is another highlight. Some may argue that some of their very earliest material like
Dawn of Possession lays a greater display of punishing riffs, but this is definitely a harsh enough release though the direction is slightly different.
In terms of musical performances, everything here is excellent yet again with amazing drumming in particular that can be either punishing or nimble depending on the situation. Trust me,
Majesty and Decay is an intense work that will envelop the listener with its layers of sound. The progression the band makes with each new album always seems to be positive and I gain a greater amount of appreciation of their music with each new release.
Immolation and death metal fans have a reason to rejoice with their new disc. Hopefully
Majesty and Decay gets mentioned as one of the best of the year eventually, though we still have a long ways left to go in 2010.
Official Immolation Band Website
Official Immolation My Space
Official Nuclear Blast Records Website
