Ominous Bloodline

When I think of death metal, I think of Florida, Sweden and Holland in particular. Beheaded are from Malta, a tiny island in the Mediterranean Sea. Not exactly known for death metal that's for sure, with Beheaded almost certainly being the most famous band. They play technical brutal death metal and they play it well, but lack originality. This is their first album for Unique Leader, a label known mostly for this style of music.

Whenever I play this album the first thing that comes to mind is Cannibal Corpse during the Vile-Wretched Spawn period. Although this influence is less prominent later in the album, during the first few tracks the comparison is obvious. Throw in some Deeds of Flesh (Unique Leader is that bands label too) and you have the essence of the Beheaded sound.

This is fast, brutal death metal with plenty of technicality. But it isn't just relentless blastbeats and tremolo riffs. Although the dominant style here is pure Cannibal Corpse worship, there's a surprising amount of variety here, with slower sections based around huge, lurching riffs. The drumming is nicely varied too, with some subtle changes of pace as well as more frantic time changes that aren't too disjointed to ruin the flow. The only criticism I have of the drums is that the bass drums have quite a clicky, triggered sound that can be annoying at times. Depends if you like that sort of drumming really, I can tolerate it in small doses and this album is a brief 36 minutes. Just don't expect to hear much bass, as the guitars are tuned very low and there aren't any virtuoso basslines running over the top on this album so the bass just gets buried in the mix. Vocally this is mostly low guttural growls with a few higher snarls but not a lot of variation.

This is a strong album. What it lacks in originality it makes up for in strong songcraft. The band definitely know how to take their influences and turn them into excellent death metal songs. 'Vaults of Ageless Pain' is a good example, with CC riffs suddenly changing into a slower, groovier section and then back again. There aren't any bad tracks here. Even 'Depths of Sore' is fine, a short track with samples over the top which then flows seamlessly into the colossal title track. i don't like albums with too many samples, but this only has one at the beginning and then the aforementioned brief track, so I'm agreeable with this. The album as a whole flows very well, as I mentioned the runtime is short which therefore means the songs don't drag on. Only one track breaches the 5 minute mark (the closer 'Rooted in Profundity') so this is short, sharp blasts of death metal.

As for being brutal death metal, this isn't as schizophrenic as Cryptopsy or as low-ended as Suffocation. I already mentioned Cannibal Corpse and Deeds of Flesh comparisons, but this mostly reminds me of Severe Torture (another CC worship band). If I didn't know Beheaded were from Malta, I'd swear they were Dutch. This is very reminiscent of that scene, so fans of Dutch death metal, CC or other bands signed to Unique Leader will find an excellent death metal album if they investigate this.

Recommended tracks: Crowned With Repression, Vaults of Ageless Pain, Ominous Bloodline, Scourging Repudiation

Hardly a departure from the direction Beheaded were pursuing with the two previous releases, Ominous Bloodline succeeds because of two important factors: a stronger sense of purpose and punishment to the songwriting which is manifest through a bevy of superior riffing, and a deeper, darker production standard which encapsulates the guttural, often gurgling vocals, courtesy of Melchior Borg, the vocalist coming in to replace Lawrence Joyce. I won't lie, this is essentially Recounts of Disembodiment 'in space', done right, and dutifully and mercilessly kicking the shit out of you. Perhaps it's just the excellent cover art, or the opacity of the music's mechanical intensity, but listening through this disc was like being in a space vessel as it was being swallowed by a black hole (or Elder God, if that's your thing), shaking to pieces while the rest of the crew around you bursts into an abstract sculpture of blood and organs. Resurgence of Oblivion and Recounts of Disembodiment failed to even place me in a proper headlock, but Ominous Bloodline thrusts me down on the block and proceeds with a single, savage stroke to separate my brain cage from the rest of my body.

Mind you, there's nothing particularly novel or unique about the album in terms of its techniques. Choppy semi-technical spurts of rhythmic voracity infused with breakdowns circa Suffocation; tail end trilling guitar surgeries courtesy of Cannibal Corpse; callous, cold blasting redolent of Deeds of Flesh. But the pacing and balance of each track is more meticulous. The rhythm guitars have this processed punch to them that feels like you're bonked rapidly and repeatedly in the face with a wrench, and when they lapse into a groove you can really feel the weight of the mutes to the point where it becomes irresistible to resist the primal, pit starved neanderthal within. Imagine the primates pacing about the monolith in 2001: A Space Odyssey if they were to suddenly start moshing one another. The leads, too, are fare more skillfully elevated to give off a progressive, almost jazzy eloquence as they scream off into the vacuum of utter darkness, and the bass guitar thunders along like turbulence as you're entering the atmosphere of a dead, or dying world. I can certainly understand why some might find the snare drum too clappy sounding, and the drums do more or less give off a soulless, robotic impression, but the force of the kicks and the overall aesthetic actually work well with the vast, otherworldly horror of the music, a nihilistic intergalactic asylum.

The vocals, likewise, are an improvement over the previous record in that you can really feel out the brute soreness of the delivery. He's got a good, growling sustain, and there are plenty of snarls spackled over the density of the guttural to keep the performance schizophrenic and malevolent, or spatial effects (as in "Ill Remains") that enforce the dark, futuristic appeal of the writing (though the lyrics aren't necessarily sci-fi in nature). The selection of tremolo picked guitars here isn't necessarily more athletic or original than on Recounts, but it's certain set in a better contrast with the denser low notes and feels more freshly grating and hostile. Tracks like "Rooted in Profundity" or "Vaults of Ageless Pain" can certainly deliver a headache due to their potent, percussive construction, but all told I felt far more enthusiastic and engrossed in the material than ever before, even on the band's promising debut Perpetual Mockery which was an incarnation of the band as its most promising and unique. Ominous Bloodline isn't ultimately the most individual sounding record in the medium, and in terms of technicality or riff progression it's not as 'rocket science' as it looks, but it's nonetheless a damn fine brutal death record, and a pugilistic monument of escapism.

-autothrall
http://www.fromthedustreturned.com

Beheaded is probably the most recognized Maltese death metal act out there. Despite that their music is categorized as brutal death metal, Ominous Bloodline is a little too complex to be simply that. A more proper term would perhaps be primitive technical death metal. But aside that, what are Beheaded doing here? Nothing new, which should be a given fact these days. So by bringing nothing new to the table, what do they bring instead? Well composed music. And that goes a long a way.

The general framework of the music has a somewhat minimalistic feel to it. The guitars are watered down and play out with high precision. The drumming tends to be a little more complex, but instead of playing out like a wall of sound, they deliver a hectic and thin performance that seem to follow the lead of the guitars. The bass guitar is pretty drowned in the middle of it all, and when heard, it does what it is supposed to do. The vocals are also of a less impressive nature, sounding like a continuous grunt that is cut up into pieces, but the delivery is one of force.

The mixing and production sounds good, aside from the drowned bass guitar, which is the only major downside really. There are bits here and there that may not be satisfactory or enough to make the release flawless, but then again, what is flawless? Another strong suit of Ominous Bloodline is the songwriting that is very tight and some very memorable sections. On top of that, are the musicians that have great chemistry and manage to demonstrate it very well.

Overall, this is a very refined from of brutal death metal, where the brutality feels somewhat absent in favor of atmosphere and technique. And to be honest, it works very well despite some mistakes.

Stand-out tracks: Ominous Bloodline, Esoteric Kin, Vaults of Ageless Pain, Depths of Sore.
9/10

Malta. Is this the last place you’re likely to look when searching for a decent slab of brutal death metal? Probably. However, you’d be a fool to overlook the obvious brutality in the form of Beheaded, Malta’s leading death metal act and perhaps one of the most inspired death metal acts in the industry today. As one can see, that’s no small feat to both rule the nation and the industry that has inspired you to do what you‘re doing. Beheaded have done just that to the heads of the musicians they‘re in competition with. Used their fast and slowing sounds to slice through the necks of all who stand opposed to their ideologies and diversity. Beheaded have been a source of inspiration for me. On a personal level, it was Beheaded’s ‘Recounts Of Disembodiment’ that was the sole inspiration behind my checking out the best that brutal death metal had to offer and to be honest, I’ve not come across a band as appealing as Beheaded, which might say a lot, depending on your knowledge of the popular genre. In comparison to the last effort, ‘Recounts Of Disembodiment’, this just about equals what it’s predecessor achieved. This fact isn’t disappointing in the slightest and does not detract from the value of the content Beheaded have placed on the record. There are some who were probably crying out for progression, but why change a winning method? This is where the notion of a sell out would probably come into play if that had been the case. As one of the samples suggests during the album, this is the personification of evil, which cannot be destroyed.

2005’s ‘Ominous Bloodline’ is a continuation of the abusive ride that Beheaded have intended for us to take. Picture this record to be a rollercoaster. If it were, it would be the fastest, the highest and the most adrenaline pumping rollercoaster ride you’ve ever experienced. To me, the one element of brutal death metal that has been overriding, and often overpowering, in my search for bands that can equal or even better the sound laid that by these Maltese masochists is the fact that the chaotic sound that brutal death metal inhabits is not controlled. Instead, there are many bands who seem to think the idea of chaos alone will increase the popularity of their music. This is note the case. The idea of perfection when it comes to a genre such as this, which is fast and furious, is when one can find oneself a band that manages to bridge the gap between chaos and control, a paradox that many fail to achieve in a musical sense. Beheaded do this by slicing and dicing their way up and down the neck of the guitar and producing top notch riffs that seem completely incomparable to any current or previous death metal band. ‘Recounts Of Disembodiment’ contained several elements that made it a success and those have been carried over on to this record. As previously stated, the lack of progression isn’t disappointing in the slightest. Beheaded have a certain way about them and that suits me just fine. Whilst one can sense certain influences, like Dying Fetus or Suffocation, Beheaded have their own distinctive sound, which is primarily created by heavy guitars, focused intently on creating a brutal sense of melody.

“Melancholic poesy perpetuating autumn tones
The November breeze heading for times now gone

The blood bath is spilled soaking arid earth
Raging cries saturate air in a dissonance of ailment
Cadence of disease set at an ascendant pace
Withering time claws at moribund remains

Crawling in an absolute absence of vision
Absorbing grim - radiating in utter revulsion.”

The complex nature of the lyrics is influenced by the complex nature of the instrumentation, which never forgets to make itself well heard, in every department. The drums, with it’s raging crash and ride cymbals and snapping snares is always a source of increased insanity alongside the high dosage of double bass, which reminds me of Dying Fetus in some ways. The fact that the soundscapes, which depict a number of obscure gruesome ordeals, control moods swings within the audience makes this a pleasurable listen. As soon as the samples on the first song, ‘Crowed With Repression’ end and the door is opened … One can begin one’s journey to the centre of the brutal death metal, which is littered by superb riffs and fantastically driven soundscapes by double bass. The vocalist is good at portraying the gore and gruesome nature of the lyrics also, which is a trait taken over from the previous record. His gargled and guttural screams have much the same impact as they did on the previous record. I can’t put my finger on why this is as brilliant as it is because death metal is fond of me and I’m not fond of it, but Beheaded have a way of portraying the ideal sound that death metal bands sound inhabit themselves.

This is a masterpiece of modern technical death metal in every aspect of the word. This is pretty much non-stop constant attack on the aural senses, it is deafening. The double bas sis basically constant, other than when there is some serious riffage. The drums follow the guitar work like a shadow, the precision is simply astonishing. I can link it to bands like Suffocation and Pyrexia in terms of technicality, but this band raises the bar on the old masters by playing faster then them.

But really what rules about this album is not the sound (standard over produced tech death, with thank god somewhat organic sounding drumming), but rather the complexity of the music, which is immense, and the awesome riffage. Seriously, this entire album’s heart and soul are the riffs, and those riffs are absolutely superb. The entire album is made up of songs that change from awesome riff to awesome riff. There is but one little interlude, and then some more awesome songs. Not all of the songs are equally awesome, but there are no fillers or bad songs, really. There is only technical ass whooping, and a whole hell of a lot of it. This seems to be a concept album, about some sort of invasion of our planet, by some obscure and weird creatures, and I like concept albums, so I was glad to hear that there is cohesiveness behind the album, and it is not just a collection of songs about butchery and rape, etc, but something that actually has a point to it. So that was actually refreshing. But the riffing is where it is, these guys keep me up at night with their riffs, I find myself sometimes having to listen to it, whether I wanted to or not. It is like a compulsion, the riffs just do not leave you alone. The cover of this album and the inlay is also masterful, and this cover has been the background for my computer for the past 3 years. I cannot say anything more, if you feel like being driven into dementia, buy this.