Sweden's Bloodbath is an extreme metal supergroup that's had a revolving lineup
of the country's elite death metal talent since forming in
1998. Previous members included vocalist Peter Tägtgren
(Hypocrisy, Pain) and multi-instrumentalist Dan Swanö
(Edge of Sanity, Nightingale, Pan.Thy.Monium). Tägtgren
was responsible for the gut-wrenching vocals of Bloodbath's
last full-length recording, the seminal Nightmares Made
Flesh (2005). The Fathomless Mastery marks the
return of the project's original vocalist, Opeth's Mikael
Åkerfeldt, who performed on the first release, 2002's Resurrection Through Carnage. (He was also the vocalist
on Katatonia's Brave Murder Day and the Sounds
of Decay EP) The current 2008 Bloodbath lineup is rounded
out by guitarists Anders "Blakkheim" Nyström
(Katatonia) and Per "Sodomizer" Eriksson (21 Lucifers),
bassist Jonas Renkse (Katatonia) and drummer Martin "Axe"
Axenrot (also of Opeth)..
The Fathomless Mastery follows the formula of the
other two classic Bloodbath releases. The formula is
simple: a devastating blend of old-school brutal death metal
with an evil modernized twist, leaving nothing but carnage
in the aftermath. It's debatable which vocalist is stronger
for Bloodbath. Tägtgren's performance on Nightmares
Made Flesh made the hairs stand on the back of your neck.
They were so forceful and intense that they alone made the
record more extreme. I'd rank it as near-legendary for death
metal. Åkerfeldt's vocals are more of the traditional
death metal growling style, although with this album he seems
to follow more in the vein of Tägtgren, his barks and
growls now perfectly flowing with the pummeling rhythm.
“Process of Disillumination,” “Slaughtering
the Will to Live” and “Mock the Cross” are
all new undeniably extreme Bloodbath masterpieces to stand
alongside “Cancer of the Soul,” “Brave New
Hell” and “Outnumbering the Day” (Nightmares
Made Flesh), and “Mass Strangulation” and
“Ways to the Grave” (Resurrection Through
Carnage). Wicked grooves, rapid-fire blastbeats, gut-wrenching
vocals and blasphemous lyrics—it really doesn't matter
who plays on a Bloodbath record because this is what you're
going to get. Everything down to the album's disturbing artwork
is plain sick. Bloodbath has set a precedent with each of
their releases, and their mission is still clear: to set the
standard for modern-day death metal and everything thereafter.
Until the next Bloodbath album, that is. |
