Suppression – The Sorrow of Soul Through Flesh

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Unspeakable Axe Records presents the first studio album 'The Sorrow of Soul Through Flesh' of the Chilean death metal band Suppression. Since debuting their 2019 EP 'Repugnant Remains' the quartet of Pablo Cortés (bass), Daniele Poblete (guitars), Cristopher Zapata (drums) and Alejandro Cruz (vocals) saw a major shift in the technical/old school death metal. Throughout the album Suppression displays a powerful technique that is honed by the likes of Morgoth, Death, Sadist and Cynic. Apart from having a fine ear for death metal perfection, the Chilean quartet shows the ability to such robust levels.

Suppression‘s songwriting prowess defines their quality, leading them to release one of the best death metal albums I’ve heard this year. The musical cohesiveness truly grasps that perfect old school sound. Despite its lack of originality ‘The Sorrow of Soul Through Flesh’ sees the band incorporating an array of elements. The riffs on the album are massively energetic and laden with roots of technical death and thrash metal that falls under the same ilk of bands as Ripper. The songwriting is tailored with sharp edges, with the bass guitar focusing on delivering constant hooks on the opening track ‘Lifelessness’.  A superb execution of the instrumentation and the rotten growls has that old school nature characterized by rapid tempos. Suppression on its first album strikes with untamed aggression. The songs fiercely strike the ears, the gritty riffs seem like they have stemmed from old Death, packed full of Morgoth and Obituary style growls that have an ear-piercing approach to them.

While the guitar solos are reminiscent of Death’s album “Spiritual Healing” the riffing assault possesses the early 90’s brutality. “Overfeeding Gaps” emphasizes shrewd performance and technical execution the fierce aggression of the vocals and the drums delivering a concrete slab of death metal. Most of the songs infiltrate relentless and brutal tempo imposing a locomotive force of chaos and showcasing excellent musical skills the extra credit goes to the bass guitar for adding savage shrewdness. “Monochromatic Chambers” pitches a high scale of aggression, the solos are well placed, and the songwriting is built on old-school foundations. Frenetic riffing and fretless bass guitar creates layers that are perfectly contrasting to the pummeling drums. Suppression takes its craft to a superior grade the album is rife with brutal vicious riffs.

Unprepetual Misery’ is a stellar example of the band’s performance: the songwriting takes the violent aggression which brings the flair of the early 90’s technical death metal. None of the instruments seems overpowering: the bass plays a significant role in creating a thick discordant sound, while the guitars focus on driving rhythms. The superb guitar work on ‘Unwinding Harmonies’ offers infectious musical hooks. The focus on rhythm creates an ethereal kind of feeling as it provides backing for the drums. Suppression defines an excellent aesthetic of the classic era of death metal, alongside thrash metal elements inspired by Sadist and Sadus. There is a sheer technicality and brutality that gives the album a variety of creative methods. Riffs are chunky, at the same time the rhythm adds a dark vibe to songs like ‘Lost Eyes’ which offers an impenetrable and thick density that would appeal to fans of Death and Obituary.

The guitar offers a solid riff structure with technical hooks utilized by the fretless bass guitar, there is a sense of brutality that resembles Monstrosity’s album ‘Imperial Doom’. The only thing that Suppression seems to depend on is the technical composition. The bass guitar is active and gets chaotic at times with the drums, ‘The Sorrow of Soul through Flesh’ is a great record for any old-school fan to be acquainted with this Chilean band. The atmospheric and progressive segment is shrewdly attached to the riffing torrent. Although the songs don’t emphasize the grooves, Suppression manages to unfurl the chunky riffs.

Songs like ‘Misunderstanding Reality’ and ‘Self-Eaten Alive’ takes a slight proggy approach. While still keeping the brutality at a full scale, they are both enhanced by the savagery of the growls. The festering chunky riffs invoke the hallmark classics of death metal. The nine tracks are arranged in such an astute manner that they don’t follow a certain formula. In fact, the album isn’t quite straightforward, but crafted in a diverse mixture of technicality. The final track ‘Extortion Behaviors’ is loaded with relentless brutality in which the drums combine blast beats utilizing excellent fillings. Vile rotten growls echo, while the fretless bass lines mesh quite well with the rapid riffs.

REVIEW SCORE

  • Music / Songwriting 9/10
  • Vocals / Lyrics 9/10
  • Mix / Production 9/10
  • Artwork & Packaging 9/10
  • Originality 9/10
9

All in all ‘The Sorrow of Soul Through Flesh’ offers a remarkable output from these Chilean lads who have resurrected the spirit of old school death metal.

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