MAUSOLEUM

The tone, sound and style(s) of late eighties and early nineties death metal have been in vogue with a newer generation for several years, inspiring young blood to carry the torch and pay homage. It's admirable to see that countless veterans have stuck to their guns over the years as well. MAUSOLEUM is one such band, running strong for nearly 25 years, the Pennsylvanians return with their third long-player, "Defiling the Decayed", a nine-song slab of filthy, authentic death metal that's nothing new but worthy because of how good the songwriting is.

With a pedigreed lineup — the unit features past and present members of INCANTATION, MORPHEUS DESCENDS and ENGORGE — MAUSOLEUM has always boasted a modus operandi and resonance that's clearly in line with said acts as well as revered American death metal legends like AUTOPSY and IMPETIGO. Opener "Beyond The Cemetery Gates" explodes as though a hybrid of early INCANTATION and AUTOPSY wrote a song on the day of a planned murder spree. "Nine Eternities In Doom" follows with more pronounced and tremendous melodies driving the guitar solos and several key riffs in the most haunting way possible that's suitable for mosh pit mayhem.

While enjoyable from start to finish, "Defiling the Decayed" is formulaic in many regards. The shifts from brooding death-doom segments and mid-paced pummeling are done well, and the transitions are compelling, but the approach becomes predictable. And although many sections within the album seem as though they can be interchangeable, which may not entirely be true in a certain sense, the release is so appealing because of how it flows. The pivots are logical. The dreary, depressive and simultaneously groovy opening swing on "Curse Of The Tomb" dramatically stops to make way for a burly death thrash onslaught that morphs into a violent death metal march. Inversely, the full-frontal assault on "Clawing The Lid Of The Coffin" abruptly halts, bringing focus to an infectious doom riff.

Realistically, MAUSOLEUM isn't likely to gain significant traction amongst the younger crowd, those who clamor for upstarts — ones who are surely passionate but derivative at best — along the lines of GATECREEPER and FROZEN SOUL. That's a shame because MAUSOLEUM really does deserve the spotlight. "Old-School Death Metal," more commonly referred to as "OSDM," is an absolutely ridiculous genre tag. In fairness, it makes sense on the surface for many young fans who may be more exposed to strands like tech death and slam death metal, but here we are really talking about timeless death metal. Regardless of how one chooses to pigeonhole such bands, fans who are drawn to rough, feral death metal need to abuse their earholes with MAUSOLEUM's "Defiling the Decayed".