Gorefest "La Muerte" (Nuclear Blast)
By Tim Den
Monday. Mar 27, 12:26 AM
Reunited Dutch metallers erase all doubts.

Ah, how the news of Gorefest’s reunion tore me in half. One side of me worried that the band, now with its members nearing 40, were going to turn in a joke of a disappointment and further tarnish their legacy (as if Soul Survivor and Chapter 13 didn’t already finish the job), but the other side held onto the hopes that the absence has only made the pit bulls angrier. So what’s the verdict, now that La Muerte has had time to seep into my pores?

For the most part, it is a good one. With a Thor-heavy production and a return to their earlier style, La Muerte is chock full of the fast, slow, grooves, blast beats, and incendiary politics that made Gorefest a fan favorite. While the album can be compared to False and Erase, it’s obvious that the band have also seamlessly integrated many facets of their later, “hard rock” songwriting approach into La Muerte. The pacing is much more natural instead of breakneck – even at fast tempos – and there’s a relaxed sense of execution within the punishing riffs. Basically, the guys are older and wiser and are able to revisit their roots with current maturity and stability in tow.

However, La Muerte is not without faults. At over an hour long, it contains many songs that could’ve used trimming. The likes of “Rogue State” and the instrumental title track (seven minutes and almost 10 minutes, respectively) drag the album’s momentum down quite a bit, and – despite a handful of winners – the second half of the record seems to lose steam and the ability to capture the listener’s attention. Granted, the band’s pinnacle album False had a semi-weak second half, but the first four songs were so absofuckinglutely unstoppable that no flaws could keep them from making the record a certified classic. Everything about them was perfect: the riffs, the arrangements, the velocity, the vocal phrasing, the breakdowns, everything. La Muerte does not contain such eye-popping entries, unfortunately, and thus its weaker moments stand out a bit more.

There are still plenty of winners, though. Opener “For the Masses,” “Man to Fall,” and especially the speedy “Malicious Intent” gather plenty of steam atop their heads as they rip through molasses-thick riffage and demon barks. Drummer Ed Warby is still the star of the band: he is articulate, tasteful, and possesses an instinct for accentuation that is almost second to none in death metal. He was already this good on False 13 years ago, so imagine how much better he has gotten since then. Bassist/vocalist Jan-Chris de Koeijer still roars with ferocity and clarity (a rarity in the genre), and guitarist Boudewijn Bonebakker has obviously benefited greatly from his classical guitar studies at a conservatory: his solos are inventively melodic, fluid, and appropriate. Overall, the band are more in control of their craft than ever… so even though La Muerte isn’t as blinding as False, it’s proof enough that the quartet won’t make me doubt them again.
www.gorefest.nl
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Tim Den

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