Decapitated – Anticult

It’s testament to Decapitated guitarist Vogg Kiełtyka that he has managed to harness everything that was so great about the death metal outfit’s first four albums and replicated it on the two following the tragic death of his younger brother Vitek and the departure of vocalist Covan, unable to recover quickly enough from the same road accident. Both Carnival is Forever and Blood Mantra were well received by critics and fans alike, so hopes are high for the band’s seventh studio effort Anticult, released tomorrow via Nuclear Blast. It’s also the first album with bassist  Hubert Więcek, who replaced Paweł Pasek last year.

Death metal is never an easy genre to get on board with at the best of times, but there’s something about Anticult that bucks this trend because it’s instantly accessible and so, so brilliant. First and foremost, whoever did the production on the record deserves a medal because every single one of the eights tracks sounds absolutely colossal and will waste no time in taking a stick to your temple and beating you repeatedly for its 37-minute duration. There are riffs for days across the album, from the opening ‘Impulse’ to the industrial feel of ‘One Eyed Nation’ and the awesome chug of ‘Never’. The vocal lines on both ‘Deathvaluation’ and the more progressive ‘Anger Line’ are just savage, Rasta Piotrowski putting in a career-defining performance as he snarls and growls his way through the album, whilst Vogg’s solo on the relentless magic of ‘Kill the Cult’ is out of this world. Więcek’s bass performance is excellent and he has locked in with drummer Michał Łysejko superbly already, shown on the shattering ending to ‘Earth Scar’. How apt as well that the closing song is called ‘Amen’, a monolithic and crushing end to an album that is almost as heavenly as the man who taught all Christians to finish prayers in the same way.

Whatever your opinion on Decapitated, whether as a whole or just within their own genre, they must be applauded for coming back as hard and fast as they did before the tragedy of 2007, and a huge amount of that credit should, and does, go to Kiełtyka as mentioned above. With Anticult, it’s another statement of intent from one of death metal’s most beloved sons and one that will wreak havoc on all who listen to it.

Band lineup

Wacław “Vogg” Kiełtyka – guitars
Rafał “Rasta” Piotrowski – vocals
Michał Łysejko – drums
Hubert Więcek – bass

Track listing

Impulse
Deathvaluation
Kill the Cult
One Eyed Nation
Anger Line
Earth Scar
Never
Amen

Links

www.decapitatedband.net/
https://www.facebook.com/decapitated/
https://twitter.com/decapitated