Path of Fire

Aeon’s brand of death metal is supposed to be more extreme than the traditional Swede DM outfit, I definitely can hear some Florida DM influence, mainly Deicide’s, but they got stuck at this point where there's no evolution in the generic sound of the band. The riffing isn't very inspired or gifted and the guitars aren't down tuned enough to cover the lack of heaviness and bad vibes. There's limited rhythmic variety and textures, and the drummer is so linear and mechanical in a bad way. Their music surely is violent but just few bits of it are really memorable, like the intro for the song “Inheritance” - one of the album's highlights.

They don't experiment much with song structures that follow the traditional mainstream radio song patterns. Intro, bridge, verse, chorus, verse, repeat. There is one slow paced breakdown ala Morbid Angel that I found interesting but that's it. The most disturbing aspect of this band is the lack of originality, it's better to copy your own works than being the lesser version of a classic band. They never developed their own sound. The guitar tone isn't filthy enough either, it lacks some body, and it isn't thick enough. Bass guitar fills the rest of the space without sorrow nor glory, it works but it's very basic and the tone isn't remarkable or impressive either, its flat as fuck. Vocals are mid ranged growls, the technique is correct but the interpreter seems heartless and not passionate at all. Generally, extreme metal vocals connect the abstraction of the music with our humanity through the feelings than can be represented with such a long range of different voices but this guy just screams because it's his job.

Production on the other hand is very modern and lifts the music up a little. The mix is technically perfect and they even got the chance to use some nice acoustic nickel wound stringed guitars in the studio to decorate the mid-album passages. It's a shame the band's talent and musicianship isn't up to the studio standards. I mean, how does such a generic band get signed by Metal Blade? You gotta be kidding me.

There goes my face....completely melted off, why? Because this is probably Aeon's best, they've really reached their peak and the line-up is just superb. The raw and intense vocals, the dirty and distorted guitars and bass and then of course the most killer drum tracks, this is a metal head's heaven! Things may sound the same to some listeners which is ok, the lyrical themes about anti-religion and how much Aeons hates priests who molest children are the same, but then again that's what makes this band good.

The drums were literally the best part of this entire album, Nils Fjellstrom has to be my favourite drummer of all time! He's one of the fastest ones I've ever heard too, such intensity and speed without any failures, all this at the ripe age of 21, now that's skill. Nils played well on all the songs, but some like Inheritance, Forgiveness Denied and I Will Burn where his best, he also had great synchronization with the guitars which is always good because this band is fast as fuck.

Guitars were brilliant, not as great as the drums but the tracks for guitars had my vote. They sounded dirty, slow and beautiful, some listeners complain about this (from the people I talk to) and they should just quit their bitching, this is what death metal is supposed to sound like. The lead was the best of them all quite frankly, solos were fucking amazing and stunning, Forgiveness Denied had the best solo without a doubt.

Last but not least, the vocals. They sounded a but like Nathan Explosion from Metalocalypse but in a completely different style, he actually sung those lyrics rather than speak them out. This album beat their previous album Bleeding the False and Rise to Dominate for sure, those two albums were baby steps towards this album, Aeon was a child who couldn't walk and now can stand like the man the band is today.
Best songs: Forgiveness Denied, Inheritance, I Will Burn, Abomination to God, God of War

Selecting a best Aeon album is truly a futile effort. "Dark Order" is basically a juiced-up Defaced Creation and "Bleeding the False" is a gigantic riff-smorgasbord. "Rise to Dominate", being the heaviest and most memorable album, may get the nod, but it's all subjective.

Upon first listen, "Path of Fire" lacks the bait and hooks that its predecessor contained, but everything else is intact and fiercely accentuated. Admirers of "Dark Order" and "Bleeding the False" Aeon should relish the band's focus on traditional brutality while new fans like myself who believe "Rise to Dominate" reigns supreme can bask in the certainty that Aeon have created an album that is as malevolent and as intimidating as anything they've ever done.

As always, the guitar work is a driving tour-de-force. Never too linear and never too ornate, Daniel Dlimi's and Zeb Nilsson's prowess is absorbed in waves of ceaseless energy. Whether it's a finger-slitting riff or a nosebleed-inducing solo, the pair shred effortlessly from start to finish in an exasperating spiral of distortion. The duo also shared bass playing efforts for the recording before Marcus Edvardsson of Soul Drainer, Chastisement, and Sanctification fame was recruited. Like "Rise to Dominate", Edvardsson also recorded and did the album's engineering at Froson, Sweden's Empire Studios, a company he shares with Joakim Sylen Staaf Sylsj. While not as technically mad as Necrophagist or Spawn of Possession, Aeon still deliver with reckless abandon and build the intensity with a myriad of clever structures.

Akin to every other Aeon album, the drumming by Nils Fjellstrom is simply overwhelming. In a style of music that births maniacal drummers by the barrel-full, Fjellstrom is one of the few that simply has it down pat. The timing, the progression, the creativity, the double fucking bass - every bit of it is death metal All-Star material.

A key feature of Aeon that tends to divide more than unite is the vocalist duty of Tommy Dahlstrom. A constantly growling and barking lead, Dahlstrom blends guttural booms and screeching highs with ease and for my money is one of the best in the business at doing so.

For many, the lyrics and their lack of innovation appear to be the problem. Yes, Aeon songs are Satanic. Yes, they can be perverse. And yes, oh yes, even in such a context can they be silly. I won't go into the details because truthfully, Dahlstrom's lyrics are not why I listen to Aeon in the first place. I listen for the unrelenting sonic assault that Aeon guarantees, and I listen for the way Dahlstrom fuses his voice into the fray. It's an awesome combination and hell, even if Aeon lyrics tend to be of the one-sided sort, it doesn't mean they can't be memorable. Listen to "I Will Burn" and you'll understand.

Complete with the occasional demonic sampling and a wide assortment of chugging, head-banging riffs, "Path of Fire" is just another lumbering step towards death metal royalty for these brutally talented Swedes.

Anyone who has listened to an Aeon album before will straight away recognise them on this CD. ‘Path of Fire’ is another instalment in what is now a staple sound for the band, a sort of simplified Suffocation combined with ‘Dechristianize’ era Vital Remains, which on paper is far from a bad thing, apart from, oddly enough, my being able to instantly put it down on paper. That is to say, this album ticks all the boxes without really creating any of its own, it is more of a collection of all the right influences rather than a forward thinking, individual effort. Basically, this sounds a lot like ‘Bleeding the False’ with the heavier production of ‘Rise to Dominate’.

Exactly as expected, Aeon growl and blast their way through 11 tracks of groove laden death metal at the expense of your eardrums and your respect for religion. Its brutal, fast and heavy, there’s whizzing solos, technical crunchy bits a la Decapitated, blasphemous song titles and an ominous instrumental track made to sound like you are entering into the Temple of Holy Ones as a foreboding wind blows in the background (see what I mean by ‘all the boxes’?).

Have I heard this all before? Oh, only a million times or so. Competent this is, boundary pushing this is definitely not. OK, no big deal, but then don’t expect too much of a fuss to be made about the material on display if it insists on meandering between territory not quite as technical as Decapitated, not quite as dramatic as Behemoth, and not quite as powerful as Vader. Wrap all this up with some of Tommy Dahlstrom’s groaningly un-provocative lyrics (in the same way that Angela Gossow’s lyrics perpetually fail to be the rallying cry of a generation) and you get a sense of how ‘Path of Fire’ manages, and yet equally fails to deliver on all fronts.

Perhaps I am being a bit harsh, because I happen to listen to this CD now and again. The mish-mashing of influences, rather than clashing horribly, actually works on this album, and Aeon are clearly able musicians with enough drive and delivery to stop my attention from wandering entirely, but rarely is my imagination captured with the end result, unfortunately. Have a listen, check it out, you will almost definitely find something you like, and if you have money to burn there’s no reason why you shouldn’t own this. But don’t expect to be listening to this over and over again, because ‘Path of Fire’ will quickly work its way to your shelf and, most likely, stay there for quite some time.