WITHERED

Memento Mori

Lifeforce

7.5 / 10

Track listing:

01. It's All Said
02. Within Your Grief
03. Like Locusts
04. Silent Grave
05. Beyond Wrath
06. Fear and Pain That Cripples Me
07. Among Sorrow

Well goddamn, here's case where the press release comparisons to early Swedish death metal are right on point! Take the motoring riff blasts of DISMEMBER, UNLEASHED, and early ENTOMBED, blend in the grime of a HIGH ON FIRE, add a quart of sludge, and you've got Atlanta's WITHERED. Now that's a damn tasty mixed drink.

The sound on this one is punishing and dirty as hell. The speed picking and drum blasts are downright smothering. On songs like "It's All Said" and "Within Your Grief", the blitzkrieg only subsides when doomy slow to mid-tempo sections take over, and it's not long before severe beatings begin again. The vocals move from classic Swedish death growl to the gruff, echoing barks of a Matt Pike (HIGH ON FIRE). Screams of agony make their way into the mix from time to time as well, such as on the nine-minute like the way Wes Kever annihilates his drum set or the manner in which the riffs strangle and choke. Doomy guitar harmonies are heard throughout — melodic yes, but never sounding like the newer school of Swedish death metal. Rather, the lead work and the downshifts in tempo always produce a hopeless, miserable feeling. Wide smiles and sparkling eyes are nowhere to be found on this album.

Visions of smoke rising from scorched earth always pop into my head when I hear bands like WITHERED. That's a good sign. Considering Lifeforce's metalcore-crowded roster, most folks will be taken by complete surprise with "Memento Mori", a dangerous album made by a monstrous quartet. Be on the lookout.

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