Epicedium
Self Titled
7.3
Death metal without a lot of frills, and with a rakish, off handed execution, Epidicium lay down real mosh with very little in the way of pretense. The main conceit to individualism seems to be the Doom3 style tech bridges from song to song. The songwriting is a bit on the Suffocation side, but without the musicianship heroics, giving it an old school feel I very much appreciate.
Said musicianship is not on the level of the better tech death bands, but the band knows how to move under the weight of their sound. And that sound is weighty, with a very dirty, claustrophobic production, which sometimes makes the band sound a little lost, or perhaps merely doesn't cover it up. But the weight is there, and each instrument is discernable.
Bottom line: If you are like me and appreciate a simple, straight forward death metal band relying on few studio tricks, this is a great find. It's not going to blow your mind, but it's going to bang your head and move your boots. That's what you expect a band to do, so the scores are not spectacular, but the band is pure, no bullshit death metal the way real DM fans like it. Check them out.
