Labels: Brilliant Emperor Records/Redefining Darkness Records/Caligari Records
Formats: Vinyl/CD/Tape/Digital
Release Date: 14 Jan 2022
Tracklist:
1. Tempest
2. Dragged
3. Resolve
4. Gathering
5. Fester
6. Filth
7. Safe
8. Despotic
It looks like 2022's gonna be a heavy one, beginning with the newest album from Australia's Descent. The HM2 inspired quintet started life in 2015 with their demo before releasing their first album, Towers Of Grandiosity is 2018. Descent's newest full-length Order Of Chaos now gets a multi-format release, as a means of trying to contain the thirty minutes of death metal madness therein. With members of Descent also lining up in some of Australia's nastiest bands, including Resin Tomb, Necroseptic and Feculent, this should be a ripper!
Descent’s approach to death metal on Order Of Chaos is a heady mix of old-school murkiness and grinding intensity, wrapped up in a blackened veil. Technically it’s very strong, unsurprisingly, with the quintet wasting no time with intros or meandering performances. They go straight for the jugular as demonstrated on opening duo ‘Tempest’ and ‘Dragged’. There’s a hardcore backbone to their sound as well, though breakdowns are hidden away in favour of Cursed-like destruction.
The low-end provides a bass hit that’s hard to ignore and Descent has an ear for melody, although it’s enshrined in a metallic coffin for the majority of the album. The vocals are made up of raspy shrieks and low register growls, somewhat akin to those of Lorna Shore, especially on ‘Gathering’. As eluded to earlier on in this review, there isn’t too much time to ponder as the album rages from start to finish. The songs rarely go over the four-minute mark during the album’s first half, ‘Fester’ leads you into the second-half by doing just that. It’s filled with atmosphere, with the instrumentation given more space.
There’s a greater attempt at variation towards the end of Order Of Chaos, with the utterly blistering ‘Safe’ leaving you battered and bruised. The band’s instrumental virtuosity is obvious, especially in the guitar work with it’s screeching leads and pinch harmonics. Concluding with the hauntingly disturbing ‘Despotic’, Descent have proven beyond any doubt that Australia’s extreme metal community will be leading the way in 2022.
In summary then, Order Of Chaos is uncomplicated and to the point. Descent don’t just copy what influences them, they weave their own rich version of death metal.
The album will be officially released on January 14th, but until then you can stream three of it's tracks below:-
Descent - https://www.facebook.com/descentmetalbrisbane
You can pre-order it digitally from Descent's bandcamp page above, as well as physically from the labels below:-
Brilliant Emperor Records - https://brilliantemperor.bigcartel.com/category/brilliant-emperor-releases
Redefining Darkness Records - https://shop.redefiningdarkness.com
Caligari Records - https://caligarirecords.storenvy.com/collections/278925-caligari-records-releases
Brilliant Emperor Records - https://www.facebook.com/BrilliantEmperorRecords
Redefining Darkness Records - https://www.facebook.com/redefiningdarkness
Caligari Records - https://www.facebook.com/CaligariRecords
