Chaostream

Lost Soul is a band that hasn't deterred from the more accessible death metal style found in bands such as Morbid Angel and Vader, yet this hasn't thwarted them from being poignant composers of an astonishingly fast and sophisticated form of metal music with a destructive intent in al cases, yet with the benevolence to recreate and bring forth reality to the deluded masses.

To begin with, the guitars are rather well placed and are obviously highly influenced by Slayer, high speed tremolo picking with some rather technical playing, most of the riffs are assembled with intelligence and rarely do you find anything uninspiring. Solos are melodic although more of them would have been more interesting, to enhance the very "in your face" attitude this band offers with few flaws.

Drumming is your typical precise, fast and articulate death metal feel, whilst falling short to trends, which is without doubt a major downfall to this type of music, yet sometimes blasts are placed perfectly, in coherence with the riffing, this is something that Vader had popularized more than anyone else though.

This music is built through powerful structures, it clearly is their strongest side, as composition allows intricate development for their ideologies (which are more of a nihilistic, pro spiritual perspective based on disregarding illusions and such) and of course, so that each riff, gutter and drum line can be performed with a powerful vision, the kind of vision which makes this music worth listening to.

Woah…holy speedboats batman!! This is FAST! Still, it really doesn’t surprise; Poland’s Lost Soul have been pursuing the same all out blasting philosophy ever since they formed their nasty little death act back in 1991. Yep, some 14 years of line up changes, bad luck and the lack of exposure outside the former Iron Curtain has restricted Lost Soul to only three full length albums in that time – all of them coming since 2000, making their nine year lead in to their debut (‘Scream of the Mourning Star’) some sort of record.

Be assured, Lost Soul are most definitely out to make up for any lost time. I recall being quite taken with 2003’s sophomore effort ‘Ubermensch’ and like that album, ‘Chaostream’ continues to highlight a band, that on surface appears to be a fairly standard run of the mill euro death metal act, but upon further investigation, are able to forge some sort of individuality and flair within the maelstrom of brutality they compose. No, don’t look to Lost Soul for any sort of redefining of the European Death Metal sound; much of this treads a well-worn path. Rather, look for a band that knows how to use their influences well.

There is little doubt that Lost Soul are massive fans of Morbid Angel and fellow countrymen Vader. However, this time it appears they have become a little more complex and technical, combining more twisted and frenetic stop/start staggered riffage that you might find on a Zyklon or Behemoth album. Add some extremely tasteful and somewhat melodic lead work throughout and it is clear that some thought has been put into this bands music.

Speed wise – both a strength and weakness for this band - Lost Soul have felt no need to temper their blinding fast philosophy and clearly fans of ultra brutal, hyper style DM will adore ‘Chaostream’. Yet, while it works well for that part of the Death Metal market, like
‘Ubermensch’ the speed factor (other than ‘Christian Meat’) might be just a tad too overwhelming for those seeking variation.

With a truly scathing Death Metal production that gives each and every instrument (including the vocals) space and clarity in the mix, ‘Chaostream’ is relentless, if a little predictable. There’s always been more to Lost Soul than straight up homage to their idols, yet it’s never been that obvious. The technical aspects (and excellent lead work) of their music is probably the only notable change they have employed since their last disc, however I still think they’re looking to define their own sound. ‘Chaostream’ is enjoyable enough and it is truly brutal, but taken as a whole; it’s not the giant leap I thought possible after ‘Ubermensch’.

KROZZA: for www.pyromusic.net and walls of fire