(Old School Death Metal) [CD] Entrails ( Swe ) - Obliteration (US Ed.) - 2015, FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

With the release of “Obliteration”, Entrails have reinvented itself once again, offering a good solid album. However, one misses the potency and indiscriminate strength felt when listening to the previous album. With that being said, let us begin dissecting this album.
The first song is a killer. “No Cross Left Unturned” begins with the sounding of distant bells and a gushing wind immediately followed by a song in the style of Bloodbath (Swe). The drummer, Adde Mitroulis shows what he’s made of by incorporating a heavy drumming that fits perfectly in the songs’ structure. The guitars are also excellent, with Penki and Lundqvist riffing mercilessly. And then in second place, comes my favorite song of the entire album: “Epitome of Death”. This is the albums’ core song, the one that shows Entrails can execute overwhelming songs without saturating. The song begins with Entrails typical horror-themed riffing only to get punkier and more malevolent soon afterwards, then morphing into an energetic and powerful song of quintessential old school. This song is simple, raw and powerful with great vocals and beautiful melodic riffing incorporated in order to enhance the overall denseness. The also simple lyrics emphasizing the word “Murder” are just awesome and they remind me of Venoms’ song Poison. The albums cover, depicting a Lovecraft-like avatar of death and destruction seems to be inspired by this song, I guess. The next song, Beyond the Flesh is a heavy duty well packed typical Swedish death song and it contributes to make the album solid. “The Grotesque” is heavier than the first songs and gets things well done incorporating a potent and faster drumming. Meanwhile, the riffs are well placed and executed.
As the album progresses, things get nastier and heavier, but not very original. The middle songs which constitute the body of this record are very similar and it gets a bit dull after a while. Nevertheless, “Bonestorm” breaks with the other songs starting with a meaner intro with heavy-laden riffing and more growling vocals. It crushes your head and makes you bang frenetically. The constant repetition of the songs name is haunting and more than delivers. “Abyss of Corpses” is another good song with down-tuned guitars at the end then morphing into violent riffing. The last song, “Re-Animation”, is the fastest and it’s a good closing track. This song contains a fast highly pitched solo at the middle that revitalizes the album, leaving one to wish for more, ending with a Gorement-like riff at the end.
All in all, this is a very good album, but as I have said, I miss the speed and heaviness of the last album, especially for the complex, melodic and fast riffing of the now ex guitar player Nilsson. I think Entrails is a band with enormous potential and capable of offering new incarnations of Swedish Death, but sacrificing speed in more than half of the album retrains the musicians power. On the other hand, Penki, the new guitar player, is certainly a very good addition; I also believe he has much to offer and I wish he keeps improving. Also, Obliteration gives you the feel the band aimed at delivering a sure-shot, without risking much. Had they implemented a more aggressive and even experimental approach, including a more personal touch, this album would have been more interesting.
If the band manages to fuse the sheer speed and brutality of “Raging Death” with the dense primitiveness of “Obliteration” while maintaining its clear melodic riffing and horror movie soundtrack vibe, Entrails will certainly deliver another masterpiece. At any rate, I highly recommend the album especially for those who appreciate similar albums like Grave’s “You’ll Never See”.

Jimmy Lundqvist Guitars
Jocke Svensson Bass, Vocals
Adde Mitroulis Drums
Penki Guitars