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Fatalist > The Depths of Inhumanity > Reviews
Fatalist - The Depths of Inhumanity

Unoriginal yet enjoyable - 70%

Myrkrarfar, May 17th, 2017
Written based on this version: 2009, CD, Ibex Moon Records

Fatalist hail from California, USA, and play crisscrossover. That is, death metal that keeps crisscrossing over the Atlantic Ocean, with Stockholm and the Florida swamps being the main destinations. “The Depths of Inhumanity” is an unoriginal yet enjoyable disc of death.

Obituary, Dismember, and Entombed seem to be the mightiest deities in Fatalist’s pantheon of idols, as the influences are not only obvious but at times disturbingly up-front. Many riffs sound like outright rip-offs, and the guitars seem to be played through a Boss HM-2 set on full blast. You know, Sunlight Studios 1991. The Sound. What it does on a debut record from 2009 by an American band? Well…it does sound good and suits the riffs, so why not use it? Especially when the riffs are the same as those originally written two decades ago… Overall the production is good, it makes the music sound powerful. All the instruments and vocals can be discerned separately while still being meshed together into a complete and rich sound canvas.

The vocals don’t quite get my juices flowing. The maniacal squawking reminds me of both John Tardy and Johnny from Unleashed, and unfortunately, those two vocalists already exist. And possess more balls. The guitars are handled expertly and sound hella nice; especially the gloomy melodic lead parts add another level to the death metal otherwise lacking dynamics. “Internal Misery” has an especially sweet harmonized guitar lead part at the end of the track.

Some riffs are extremely catchy, like the verse riff on “Homicidal Epitaph”, and this is what keeps the Fatalist boat floating. That particular track is also a good display of the cunning arrangement skills these aces from Ventura possess, my interest is easily held throughout the track when both new and familiar parts alternate to keep the momentum driving onwards.

If you like any of the bands mentioned earlier, you will probably like “The Depths of Inhumanity” as well, but be warned: you might hear your favorite riffs being played anew – and not in a cover song. Had this disc not been as blatant in its Ye Olde Scene worship, I’d scored it higher, ‘cause this is actually good shit.

Fatalist - The Depths of Inhumanity - 90%

Orbitball, August 6th, 2010

This traditional death metal act was formed back in 2006. Their origin is in Ventura, California. For this album, they consisted of being a 4-piece act. Neil Burkdoll on vocals/guitar, Wes Caley (Exhumed, Uphill Battle, Stonehelm) also on vocals/guitar, Art Hayes on bass and Tyler Castro on drums. Sadly, Wes Caley and Tyler Castro both left the band in 2009, shortly after this album was released. Now they are a 5-piece band, but with this album, they still were strong and heavily Swedish death metal influenced. The album consisted of sounding like that mostly; that and among other death metal bands as well.

This band plays strictly death metal. With heavy, B-tuned guitars, they are in some parts, wholly thick and consist of some melodic sounding riffs. All of the tracks are filled with semi-fast tempos, along with other songs with even sounding speeds. There really aren't any totally fast parts, but still they are aggressive. Just check out the songs "Frozen Epitaph" and "Morbid Derangement", as they are in summation a conglomeration of unique guitar riffs, played at varying speeds.

The melodic parts are totally apparent on many tracks, and other aggressive riffs played alongside their brutal vocal outputs. The drums rarely get to a hyper fast pace-they seem more subdued. That doesn't take away from the quality that this band created with this release. Death metal isn't played much better than what's concocted on here. The guitars are so chunky and heavy, but they don't drown out the more melodic/musical riff-writing.

Some songs are played with less aggression, though the main guitars still remained heavy. There were slower tempos, which captured the essence of the unique writing capabilities of this band. The guitars were more groove laden rather than existing to that of outlandish and nonsensical blast beats. As I mentioned, there were some faster drum parts, but mostly the band focused on having slower tempos instead of reflecting that of an extreme death metal act.

There were some solos on this release, but they weren't too technical. They made the rhythms sound more augmented with enduring melodic temperaments. All of the tracks featured the band's main influences, which again sound like they are a Swedish death metal band. The fact that they originated in California is very surprising.

The production sound/mixing by Neil Burkdoll was solid, with every track including the remastered demo versions. Each instrument was heard with quality engineering. This album captures 7 songs from their "Loss" demo, plus 4 new songs all remastered onto one CD. All of the tracks are clear sounding, even the earlier demo tracks. They all were well played out and mixed properly. As far as the lyrical contents, they reflect that of death and negativity. Fatalist does no cover songs on here.

In conclusion, if you want a Swedish influenced death metal release with grim and morbidly infested lyrical content, then "The Depths of Inhumanity" delivers. This album is wholly a strong portrayal of how death metal should be played-with aggression, uncompromising guitar overtures and a complete onslaught of riff-writing. The song titles and lyrical content reflect how death metal is at its' finest. More songs to capture online via their MySpace page are located here: http://www.myspace.com/fatalist666. Other tracks to hear with vigor are "Homicidal Epitaph" and "Impulse To Kill." Fatalist defies the odds with songs that deliver fine traditional death metal.

More convincing than you'd expect - 80%

Razakel, February 11th, 2010

Californian death metallers, FATALIST, formed in ‘06 and released their debut, The Depths of Inhumanity, in ‘09, but you wouldn’t know it. I haven’t heard such a filthy production in quite a while. Old Swedish death metal is what this band is mostly paying homage to, but I also hear some early Carcass and Obituary muddled in with that messy onslaught of grimy death metal. It’s nice to see a new death metal band turn up who doesn’t try to make every song as technical as possible. Nope, FATALIST are definitely keeping to the basics of the genre, although some nice solos here and there are always a welcome addition.

A fast, crunchy riff is how Frozen Epitaph opens this ugly beast. This song nicely captures everything that FATALIST seem to represent. The aggressive verses are contrasted with several slow, pummelling sections and topped off with a brilliant guitar solo that reminds me of something off of Entombed’s Left Hand Path. Atmosphere is integrated throughout the album and one interesting moment in particular is the clean intro to Life Deploration. The whole thing is drenched in darkness and a tortured wail introduces some frantic leads that burst into the mix in quite a memorable fashion. This is definitely a highlight for me. The song includes some of the strongest riffs and a great melodic section partway through. Moments like these, coupled with the obligatory faster numbers like Impulse to Kill and Homicidal Epitaph make for an enjoyable listen. The gritty guitar tone along with the bass heavy mix reminds me of NAPALM DEATH’s Scum, especially on tracks like Homicidal Epitaph, where the bass especially stands out.

There’s no denying that what FATALIST is doing is something that has been done before. Nevertheless, there’s a certain charm of authenticity that separates them from the countless other bands that rehash early death metal material album after album. Maybe it’s the fact that the album is self produced which makes the production come off as really grimy and downright ugly as hell, suiting the music perfectly. Nevertheless, I’m impressed with the level of confidence from this young band and would certainly recommend them to fans of early American and Scandinavian death metal.

Originally written for www.metal-observer.com

Both sides of the pond - 75%

autothrall, November 29th, 2009

Fatalist operates with a very refreshing take on death metal that is actually not so fresh...they take the grisly horror of old school Obituary and Autopsy, dowse it in a little Swedish tone, and then write some fairly memorable tracks with the resulting mixture. This is a band who understands how to use their guitars effectively to create both an atmosphere without sacrifice the power of the riff. These two power saws are hacking straight from through charnel house, splintering bone and sawing through morbid flesh. And yet, there is nothing too gloomy or morose here. The lead work is well placed, and highly atmospheric (like old school Entombed leads from the first two albums, if a little less wild). Wes Caley and Neil Burkdoll then infuse their guitar work with brash, bloodied vocals that fall within the expected, post-Carcass range.

Most of the songs create an excitement, a forward thrust which reveals a near-thrash aesthetic. "Frozen Epitaph" barrels along with some thick but crisp, flighty, thrashing guitar passages while the vocals tear across the top like a chainsaw murder. "Internal Misery" would be the natural result of Entombed writing a sequel to Obituary's killer Cause of Death album. The riffs carry a grim humor to them, and the leads are simple but deep, carrying the track to another level. "Morbid Derangement" grinds into a chuggy thrash rhythm, once again very simple, but quick to get the neck banging. "Contamination" is a full bore stomper, with a similar olden Entombed pace to the rhythm and a little funeral contagion in the bridge melody. Other gut wrenchings of note include the groovy Grave-a-long "Homicidal Epitaph", the grinding "Life Deploration" and the plasma churning "Rivers of Blood", with its murderous melodies.

Fatalist embody a lot of class from both sides of the Pond, and The Depths of Inhumanity can wisely play into the death metal advocate's nostalgia for the genre's swampy Floridian roots and Swedish meat cleaving carnage. The band mixed and produced the album themselves, and it sounds vibrant like fresh slaughter. There are a few tracks which don't develop nearly as well as others, and so it's not wholly consistent, but for a debut it was a pretty good listen.

Highlights: Internal Misery, Morbid Derangement, Contamination, Rivers of Blood

-autothrall
http://www.fromthedustreturned.com