Release date: November 29, 2019
Label: Metal Blade
Production: Dave Otero
Length: 54:58
California brutalizers Cattle Decapitation have seriously raised their profile over the past decade. These days they’re pretty much one of the most talked-about death metal bands out there. But it took them quite a few albums to get there. The big leap came with Monolith of Inhumanity (2012), where they massively upgraded their production. Three years later they confirmed the quality with The Anthropocene Extinction. A few lineup changes followed: seasoned bassist Olivier Pinard (Cryptopsy) joined, and Belisario Dimuzio came in as second guitarist, which undoubtedly beefed up the band.
Death Atlas was once again recorded with producer Dave Otero (Allegaeon, Archspire, Cephalic Carnage and others), who has worked with the band since Monolith of Inhumanity. Otero understands the band well enough to take them to the next level. On the other hand, he’s also a safe enough choice that you know it won’t turn out badly.
So what does Death Atlas bring to the table? Exactly the brutal racket you’d expect, technically sharp enough to win over fans with just the first two tracks, The Geocide and Be Still Our Bleeding Hearts. The instrumentals on this record absolutely shine. The guitars serve up sharp, fast tremolo picking death metal riffs, with the odd black metal touch thrown in. The grind influence is more than obvious too. The rhythm section is just as confident, with David McGraw’s drumming packed with blast beats and rapid-fire double bass.
Cattle Decapitation’s secret weapon is still vocalist Travis Ryan, who has incredible screams, while his growl is powerful enough to match the apocalyptic themes. Ryan has also started developing vocal melodies, even if they’re delivered with screams. Bring Back The Plague is a great example. Then there are the high shrieks you’d normally expect from some black metal band. Lyrically, Ryan stays critical of humanity in countless ways. The band more than clearly drives home their dissatisfaction with today’s society in the lyrics of Bring Back The Plague:
Bring back the plague
Delete those that threaten a new world
Start today
Dig their graves
You might think Cattle Decapitation are all about speed, but a different picture emerges, mostly thanks to thoughtful songwriting. Many songs have slower sections that make the whole thing far more dynamic and a bit more unpredictable. That’s why people say the band is bringing in more progressive elements. After all, Death Atlas is full of genre crossbreeding: you can hear a mix of grind, brutal death metal, black metal and even technical death metal. And with the vocals on top, the chaos reaches perfection!
It’s hard to say what the album’s peak is. But in the closing stretch Cattle Decapitation definitely show off their ingenuity. Time’s Cruel Curtain is loaded with brutality and melancholy. And the structure of the record itself makes it clear that the progressive element is definitely there. The album wraps up with the long title track. At first it’s brutal in the band’s signature style, but in the second half it shifts into something with more of a doom flavor. There are even low, melodic vocals that underline the morbid theme. At just over nine minutes, it’s the band’s longest song yet and a perfect way to close the album. The lyrics aren’t exactly optimistic about humanity either:
There’s no fear for tomorrow when there’s no trust for today
There’s no ever after, debts have to be paid
With Death Atlas, Cattle Decapitation deliver the most polished, most refined record of their career. Every previous release was said to be a tough act to follow, but after this one, the next album will undoubtedly have a hell of a job on its hands.
9.5/10
Tracklist:
- Anthropogenic: End Transmission
- The Geocide
- Be Still Our Bleeding Hearts
- Vulturous
- The Great Dying
- One Day Closer to the End of the World
- Bring Back the Plague
- Absolute Destitute
- The Great Dying II
- Finish Them
- With All Disrespect
- Time’s Cruel Curtain
- The Unerasable Past
- Death Atlas
Lineup:
Travis Ryan: vocals
Josh Elmore: guitar
Belisario Dimuzo: guitar
Olivier Pinard: bass
David McGraw: drums
