The Necrotic Manifesto

Author: Primož Novak

Artist: Aborted
Label: Century Media
Release: year_month
Length: 42:34
Rating: 4/5

International grind/death metal outfit Aborted are something of a phenomenon. There’s a new member on pretty much every album, and after all those lineup changes the band still keeps putting out records on a regular basis. The only real stumble was Strychnine.213, where they tried to chase the deathcore trend, which didn’t work out all that well. That led to a longer rethink and a serious lineup overhaul, so the only original member left is vocalist Sven de Caluwe. With Global Flatline the mistake was fixed and trust in Aborted was restored. With The Necrotic Manifesto, the band just confirms it’s found the right direction.

The Necrotic Manifesto explodes out of the gate with The Extirpation Agenda, which packs in everything the band is known for. Speed is front and center, with Ken Bedene’s fast drumming dominating. Sven de Caluwe’s vocals focus on growling with the occasional »screaming«, while the guitar riffs have just the right speed and bite. Almost the whole album is built in a pretty similar way, but to keep The Necrotic Manifesto from being yet another dry, brutal record full of similar songs, calmer passages show up, which the two guitarists use to show off their soloing chops. With Coffin Upon Coffin, Aborted show their big influence. The song reminds you a lot of Carcass and their legendary album Heartwork. You could argue at first that it’s a ripoff, since the vocal tone is similar to Jeff Walker’s too, but with the blast beats and Sven’s growl it turns into something one of a kind.

After that, the album serves up the fast tracks you’d expect, which don’t bring anything new and just confirm what the band is all about. The same goes for the lyrics, which reflect Sven’s love of horror movies. Toward the end the album gets pretty predictable, and hope only returns with the closing track Cenobites, which has fewer repetitive patterns and a more interesting structure.

The album is suitably modernized. The instruments are distinct, the bass doesn’t stand out, and the kick drum pedals are audible all over the place. The Necrotic Manifesto shouldn’t let fans down, because it’s got everything you’d expect from Aborted. That said, the old dilemma pops up again: Aborted have stagnated, because there’s nothing new to hear, just tried-and-true stuff.

Lineup

Swen de Caluwe – vocals

Ken Bedene – drums

JB van der Wal – bass

Danny Tunker – guitar

Mednel bij de Leij – guitar

Production

Jacob Hansen

Tracklist