Artist: Centinex
Label: Candlelight Records
Release Date: 4/30/02
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Title: Diabolical Desolation Artist: Centinex Label: Candlelight Records Release Date: 4/30/02 |
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Abyss's Review:
Here we are in the beginning of March. With allergy season around the corner many of you out there will soon be praying for relief from hayfever. Runny nose, itchy eyes, and asthma are determined to ruin your outdoor fun this spring. If you suffer from these symptoms ask your doctor about Centinex. Centinex helps you breathe easier, alleviating both indoor and outdoor symptoms. Remember, Centinex is available only by prescription. Warning: some side effects include headache, cottonmouth, nausea, and death due to dehydration as a result of explosive diarrhea.
"Remember, Centinex is available only by prescription." Okay you got me. Centinex isn't the newest prescription drug advertisement, but a melodic death metal band, whose new album, Diabolical Desolation, is a quality Gothenburg styled romp through the underworld. And while this band was originally formed in 1990, they have gotten very little recognition, at least on this side of the Atlantic. For fans of the genre, that is unfortunate, because this is a very good album in many ways, and those who can't get enough of At the Gates and mid years In Flames and Dark Tranquillity will surely find a lot to enjoy in this album.
Of course that's probably the biggest problem with the album. It's not only been done before, but it embraces a style that's starting to feel dated (actually, many have believed the Gothenburg sound passe by the end of the 90s). So while this is a quality album, I find myself having trouble getting overly excited about it. For those who still can't get enough and lament the passing of the big boys into more commercial realms, this album will fit in nicely amongst the other latecomers to the genre (namely bands like Shadow and Soilwork). Of course, it's probably unfair to refer to them as "latecomers" if they've been playing this since the early 90s. All of the songs on the disc are good, and some really kick ass. "Soul Crusher" gets me bobbing my head every time with its deeper vocals and mosh inducing riffs.
"All in all I'd like this band to put more of their own signature on their next record." I personally havent really gotten all that sick of this stuff yet, so I feel the need to recommend this album. All in all I'd like this band to put more of their own signature on their next record. Something that will make them stand apart from the pack a little more. One word review: Great!
Death's Review:
I like Centinex, a thrashy little blackened-death outfit from Sweden which just happens to have been around since 1990, although I'm just hearing them for the first time now. I do recall these guys having played the Metal Meltdown III in Asbury Park New Jersey in April 2001--perhaps their first and only U.S. appearance so far? I'm not sure. Anyway, I remember everybody drinking andraging in the bar across the street, and I'm talking to some Swedish dude who I think was in Centinex (or was there with Centinex, or was there to see Centinex or... something), talking old-school thrash with him and some of the guys from Flotsam and Jetsam. This dude was like way psyched to be talking about old-school thrash and was a lot of fun to chat with. So whoever that was, hearing the name Centinex puts me in the mood for thrash, and - fairly or unfairly - I put on Diabolical Desolation’ wanting to hear some killer riffs.
My thoughts shift back to Jersey (incidentally, I think that venue actually was used as a location shoot for an episode of the Sopranos, where Big Pussy gets killed or something). And, as I recall the occasion, I am at least reasonably sure both that (1) Centinex did indeed play that show; and (2) I did not catch their set. Now, after listening to the album, I'm sorry I missed it. Centinex do deliver some cool riffs, especially the slow and heavy stuff, like the riff that starts about the 1:50 mark of "Spawned to Destroy", or the even heavier riff that kicks in just after 4:00 of that same killer track. Or the cool riff starting about 3:20 or 3:30 into the title track, or the awesome riff in the middle of "On Violent Soil", or... You get the point-- there's a lot of cool riffs on this album. I now know that guitarist Jonas Kjellgren is also in Carnal Forge, which also explains the killer death metal guitar work exhibited here.
"Anyway, I remember everybody drinking and raging in the bar across the street, and I'm talking to some Swedish dude who I think was in Centinex..."
Truth be told, there's nothing terribly "earth-shatteringly essential" about Centinex, other than their ability to conjur a more extreme blend of Dismember, The Haunted, Entombed, At the Gates and spiced with more than a little Dimmu/Cradle hint of goth and black. They are good, and they are cool. Bottom line? They have some killer riffs that never get lost admist the chaos. There's a lot of metal out there, but Centinex have been fighting the battle for a long time, and they sound really fucking cool. They deserve some attention.
"Bottom line? They have some killer riffs that never get lost admist the chaos. "
Hel's Review:
Consider this scenario: you hold in your hands a CD from a band you've never heard of before. What element catches your eye first? If you're anything like me, the first piece of information you'd process is the band's chosen name. So here I am, holding a record by a band calling themselves "Centinex." What the hell is that? I cannot even begin to guess the thought process that went into creating that odd moniker, so I latch onto the next best descriptive piece of info, the font the band's name is written in. In this case, it is a stylized font designed to be illegible, and generally favored by bands with a more extreme bent to their music. I finally decide that the style reminds me most of the style many death metal bands write their logos in, so that was my first impression, and the one accompanying me for the first few notes of my sonic journey.
Once the album was in my player, and a few songs had passed, I found myself somewhat surprised that I was still playing the game of trying to place them firmly in a subgenre. Since my first instinct was death, and there is clearly an undeniably a death influence present, my mind continued to go that way for a while. Then I started noticing a strong and, once you notice it, obvious black metal influence, which became more evident as I continued to listen to the record. However, the presence of traditional black metal elements is neither pure nor constant. Then there are thrash and other non-black metal influences that show through the songs very strongly as well, further muddying the issue.
"So here I am, holding a record by a band calling themselves "Centinex." What the hell is that?"
At the end of the day, I don't know if I really even care. The true motive behind my ridiculous tale is to illustrate that I ultimately found my game of "peg that band" more riveting than the record itself. Now, don't get me wrong, this really is a very good record. It's a great combination of elements, with strong black and death metal overtones. The parts are all well performed, and the songs are solidly written. But I was never really blown away, nor was I particularly taken in. Centinex has done a great job of combining elements into quality metal. But while it is on the very good end of the average spectrum, it still has one foot solidly planted in average. It is well-done, genre-crossing, fast paced hybridized metal. Certainly worth picking up if you want to jam out on a great band you've never heard of before. If you want an earth-shattering, ground-breaking, life-altering album, well, I don't know, I didn't find it here, but far be it from me to say that no one will - maybe it will be you. I look forward to hearing more from Centinex in the future.
"But while it is on the very good end of the average spectrum, it still has one foot solidly planted in average."
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