Undeath - Lesions of a Different Kind (2020)^{Release ID: 24108}

I really like Undeath's modern take on an old favourite, that being the cavernous OSDM style of the late 80s and early 90s as practiced by the likes of Autopsy and Incantation. Their debut, Lesions of a Different Kind, takes the filthiness and looseness of sound typical of the OSDM style and ever-so-slightly clean and tighten it up. The production isn't as cavernous-sounding and gritty as the originals and the playing is tighter, with a small degree of technicality added that the likes of Autopsy never seemed interested in. That said, though, they still retain plenty of the fundamentals of the style and this is no super-crisp technical death metal exercise by any means, but rather a modern upgrade, OSDM v2.0 if you like.

Alexander Jones' vocals (no, not the Infowars idiot) are the typically low-pitched growls of Reifert and co. that have that "gurgling demon" quality that is my favourite incarnation of extreme metal vocalisation as he intones the gore- and horror-filled lyrics of tracks like "Suitably Hacked to Gore" and "Chained to a Reeking Rotted Body", with Black Dahlia Murder vocalist, the late Trevor Strnad, lending a counterpoint to Jones' growling with his harsher shrieks during the title track. The riffs pour out like molten lead and have some nice hooks guaranteed to set heads nodding with enough tempo variations to keep the listener interested. The lead work is concise and efficient with Sanguisugabogg drummer Cody Davidson supplying a more expansive solo on the opener, "Suitably Hacked to Gore". Bass and drums combine well to drive the riffs, with drummer Matt Browning doing some cool stuff without becoming too showy.

Look, Undeath are not going to satisfy those who crave innovation and constant envelope-pushing from their extreme metal, their's is very much a retreading of old tropes that have been with us for three decades or more now, but if you can't ever get your fill of this particular style of OSDM (like me) then they will supply you with a fresh, modernised version of that which you crave.

If variety is the spice of life then how do the wise ones of the world explain the quality of bands like Undeath?  I mean there's literally no "spice" here, at least none that haven't been used before in decades of death metal recipes for sure, yet the palate can't help but be satiated by the familiarity of what it gets on Lesions of a Different Kind.  I think the success of the album (which is limited I grant you) is largely down to both the effort and ability of these guys.  Although it's not difficult to spot all the Cannibal Corpse, Incantation, Immolation and Finnish dm overtones of the record there's more to the album than just old-school worship.  This be death metal done by some of its most learned students.  In short they know their shit when it comes to death metal.

Not reinventing the wheel but doing that non-reinvention really fucking well is enough to ensure that the pressure of delivering something fresh into a genre that has seen it all is removed and there's a real feel on this record that the guys are having an absolute blast as a result.  They approach the delivery of the record with an assuredness that would have you think that they have been playing these songs for years. Tracks flow brilliantly into one another, with subtle changes of pace and tempo deployed so smoothly that you feel relaxed by how well it all fits together.

I can't pretend it will be played hundreds of times during my remaining years on this mortal coil but it certainly does an excellent job of reminding me of all the good reasons of why I got into death metal in the first place. Check out those shifting riffs towards the end of Acidic Twilight Visions for some nasty, shiver-inducing chills down your spine (and then note how the same sound is there during the initial part of next track, Lord of the Grave) like the more horrific moments of  Morbid Angel.  If this album serves no further purpose than to give you impetus to go and throw on Close to a World Below then it's a rip-roaring success.  On the flip-side, it holds its own against most of the stuff that influences the sound it celebrates.  Sneak this into a radio playlist alongside the 90's most familiar purveyors of death metal and the uneducated struggle to realise it is not from the hey day of death metal.

P.S. that artwork is awful, the drummer did it but don't worry, he's much better at drumming.

2020 has been one of the strangest years that most of us have ever (and most likely, WILL) ever see. In a year in which everything that we knew and loved had been taken away from us because of a novel disease, we have all had to adjust to this brand new lifestyle. And for me, part of that lifestyle has been new music. As of writing this review, I have listened to over 300 new albums that were released in the year 2020, which is the highest number I have accumulated since 2016. Part of this is due to the lockdowns; much of my time has been trapped indoors so why not listen to a new album?

I have also managed to get my number so high because of my intention of listening to albums from genres that I do not have the most experience in. Which leads us to Undeath, a Rochester based death metal band who are doing a lot of mid to late 1990s worship of bands such as Immolation. And Lesions of a Different Kind is their debut record. And while I will certainly be the first to admit that this is not my cup of tea, I can see the appeal in it and can see why it is being flocked to by so many in the underground.

So what makes Undeath stand out amongst their contemporaries? Not much actually. The compositions on this record are very slapdash and held together with silly string. The transitions that we get from brooding slam portions to the more vicious tech death side is alarming and on multiple occasions, disorienting. Not for the band fortunately as the group is able to make the transitions in synchronicity, which is welcome in my ears. It's one of the many issues from those Immolation/Cannibal Corpse records that has been resolved, but these were issues that should have been fixed years ago. Credit where it do for sure, but when the issues involve basic editing and redubbing, these are things that all records should have.

Speaking of which, let's talk briefly about production, because many of my issues from the compositions are here as well. Mid to late 90s tech death has some very poor mixing in general, but Undeath were quick to realize that and really barrel in on what sounds are important at any particular moment. The guitar is usually in the forefront yes, but the percussion sounds very good and is not plagued by over-compressed cymbals or trigger bass drum. The bass is fairly irrelevant throughout (typical for this brand of death metal), but it does exist and it does not sound like it's being left in the dust by the guitars. All in all, it is one of the better tech death records from a sonic perspective. That being said, it is still a tech death record and it does have problems. The guitars are perpetually trapped in their two lowest strings, which means that there is no bass/guitar independence. I would say that "Phantasmal Festering" and "Lord of the Grave" have the closest thing to a divergence between the two parts.

Like I said, this is not a branch of metal that I typically don't delve into all that much. Before I would look at a record like this and simply turn away. But I am welcoming of this now and I can see the appeal of this, even though I won't listen to this very much. It is a better version of that Immolation/Cannibal Corpse sound from the 90s, but it does not do much else than that. For me, Tomb Mold are changing the game. I would rather stick with that.

Let's just get this out of the way early & say don't go into "Lesions Of A Different Kind" expecting something fresh or new because you'll be sorely disappointed. This is pure old school death metal worship with Incantation & Immolation being the two names that immediately spring to mind. "Lesions Of A Different Kind" is a dark, dank, swampy, swarming mass of disgust with those definitively deep vocals that the style has built its reputation on & a bassy guitar sound that's tuned down so far you can feel the strings vibrating in your gut. In fact, you won't be able to distinguish the vocal delivery from that of the band's I've just mentioned & the guitar tone has got a similar feel to Morbid Angel's 7-string efforts on "Covenant" & "Domination" only it's less precise in its execution. I also pick up a bit of 1989-91 Carcass influence at various times & the drumming is certainly influenced by Cannibal Corpse's Paul Mazurkiewicz.

In terms of quality, this is mostly all good shit for an old school death metal fan like myself. I think the opening track "Suitably Hacked to Gore" was a poor choice to kick off proceedings though as it's the only track that I don't have time for. I'd be lying if I said the "heard-it-all-before" nature of this album doesn''t limit its scoring potential but for the most part it's done almost as well as the records that influenced it so don't let that put you off. I think Undeath are at their best when they're at the lower end of the tempo range (particularly when utilizing double-time ride-cymbal work) & when they start to think up-tempo their appeal wanes just a touch. Overall "Lesions Of A Different Kind" is a very solid if unashamedly meat-&-potatoes death metal release that should appeal to most fans of the genre.