Severe Torture - Slaughtered (2010)^{Release ID: 12538}

Dutch band Severe Torture have released a really impressive album of intense, energetic death metal which sits somewhere between the classic 90's Florida sound of bands like Morbid Angel & Death & the blasting brutality of Cannibal Corpse & Suffocation. Don't let the band name or album cover fool you as there is a lot more on offer here than your average splatter/gore merchants are capable of. The production is excellent & all of the performances are well executed. The thing that sets Severe Torture apart from the rest of the field is their ability to include plenty of melody without losing any of the modern brutality. They don't go overboard with the technicality like most of the modern death metal scene seem to do & consequently there is more reliance on the strength of the riffs which is very refreshing. The guitar leads are certainly reminiscent of 1990s Death. There is also plenty of variety in tempo to keep the listener interested. This is nothing dramatically new or original but that's not necessarily a problem when the death metal is of such a high quality. "Slaughtered" should appeal to anyone with an interest in modern death metal.