Review by UnhinderedbyTalent for Pestilence - Consuming Impulse (1989)

The rabid death/thrash sound of the debut album from Pestilence Malleus Maleficarum was replaced by a more straight forward death metal sound on the sophomore record. Still a massively riffy affair, Consuming Impulse was the sound of extreme music delivered skillfully.

Patrick Mameli's dexterity on guitar knows no bounds on the band's sophomore release. He took simple riffing and elevated into a frenzied intensity that still had enough in the way of catchiness to make them memorable and repeatable, either in your head or on your own six string. On the same record there were still more complex passages that showed his range yet still they gave space to Van Drunen who set about his trademark unhinged, deranged and crazed vocal style to great effect on what was to be his final release with the band (very much a big loss as it turned out to be). 

This was all from a band several thousand of miles away from the developing US death metal scene, yet the Dutch band from Enschede, Overijssel dropped an album of such magnitude and presence that it could trade blows with the Morbid Angel's and Obituary's of the time and only narrowly lose out on points. 

In a rapidly developing scene the release of Consuming Impulse showed just how the spread of death metal could infect the European market as it went on to infect the world. This album acted like a super-spreader, taking all the good elements of the debut and marrying them up with an enhanced arsenal of riffs and howls. The rabid thrashing of the debut became the threat of greater devastation from a slightly more measured delivery on the follow up.  The maturity and adaptability displayed on only their second record to my ears drained the tank for the rest of the band's output as they have never topped Consuming Impulse.