Mass Obliteration
Abrahamithic Curse
6.8
Mass Obliteration, a young death metal band from Italy, actually did a fair amount to impress me with Abrahamitic Curse, the outfit’s first demo. Judging by the band’s moniker I was expecting yet another lame brutal death act ripping off Suffocation, but the material here is actually fairly original and interesting, if still a little unfocused. While rooted firmly in old-school death metal, Mass Obliteration show some unorthodox leanings that are pulled off pretty effectively, as well as delivering the goods on the more traditional death metal side of things.
For a debut demo, this is a fairly ambitious offering. The three-part “Shrine Of The I” ties the work together and is probably the most compelling part of the disc, particularly the excellent bass soloing and atmospheric vocals that make up the second chapter. “From Beyond” is another strong track, keeping mostly at a heavy mid-pace tempo but exploding into blasting fury by the song’s conclusion. “Balls Torture For Preachers” (give 'em a break, they're Italian) is the most flat-out intense track on here, and “Aaimonion (Demon Of Goddess)” features some surprisingly technical guitar noodling toward the end of the song. The musicianship works in some areas and not so well in others, but the song structures are pretty compelling (dare I say, progressive?) nonetheless. Vocals bring to mind bands like Incantation and are likewise executed well.
While the songs are good for the most part, things come off as a little jumbled at times. The tricky part about writing good death metal is composing songs that are technical and demanding yet still smooth and memorable. While the hooks are there, Mass Obliteration still has a lot of room to grow when it comes to turning all those hooks and riffs into well-developed, catchy songs. “Supremacy” is the biggest culprit in this regard, jumping around from riff passage to riff passage without ever really getting off the ground and making its mark. This sort of lack of focus is common with fledgling acts, however, what’s more important in debut demos is the potential displayed, and Abrahamitic Curse definitely shows potential. I’m not sure these guys are going to become the next Decapitated or anything, but a little organization in the songwriting department could see Mass Obliteration turn into a very solid death metal band.
