Artist: Nonexist
Label: Century Media
Release Date: 5/28/02
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Title: Deus Deceptor Artist: Nonexist Label: Century Media Release Date: 5/28/02 |
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Abyss's Review:
Defleshed, Dark Funeral, Andromeda, and Arch Enemy. There is a lot of quality experience right there, and Nonexist borrows players from each band. Johan Liiva, who I found to be an exciting throat and frontman in his days with Arch Enemy, probably feels a little pressure after the widespread acclaim for Wages of Sin, the first Arch Enemy album since his departure. Think about how his ego might be shattered. I mean, they did replace him with a petite blonde girl, perhaps they never thought him attractive enough? Do you think before every show he stares in the mirror and repeats, "I am pretty! I am pretty!"? Then on top of that, as if he wasn't already under enough pressure, his record company releases a promo saying, "Once again the metal community is about to witness the splendid shock of energy delivered by a debut album. There's nothing quite like it; the do or die factor!" Do or die factor!?! That doesn't sound like a label that's going to stand behind you while you build an audience.
"Deus Deceptor seems to be trying to put across a raw version of the highly polished Arch Enemy. This sound is, in and of itself, a mistake." That being said, this album has a lot of expectations associated with it. And while I was under the impression that most artists wanted to distance themselves from former bands, Century Media is playing up the connection. They state that fans of Black Earth will be banging their head in approval. These comparisons are a big mistake, because whatever positives can be said about Nonexist, Arch Enemy they are not.
Deus Deceptor seems to be trying to put across a raw version of the highly polished Arch Enemy. This sound is, in and of itself, a mistake. The rawness of Black Earth didn't seem to be a planned occurrence, but rather it was born out of necessity. Here it sounds like a polished band that ran out of money. Nonexist is a three-piece consisting of Johan Liiva, Johan Reinholdz and Matte Modin (not to be confused with Matt Modine of VisionQuest, the beautiful story of an awkward high school wrestler who gets to bang Linda Fiorentio), and that is their biggest fault. They sound like a three-piece. Three-piece makes a good order from KFC, not a metal band. The guitars sound thin, and I almost feel like I could erase the whole disc by blowing on it. And Mr. Liiva doesn't seem to compare to his former self. If he doesn't shape up soon, he may have to take one of the i's out of his name.
"They sound like a three-piece. Three-piece makes a good order from KFC, not a metal band." The songwriting is the best part of this album, as there are many good riffs to be found. These guys are talented, and this band could be formidible after it gets a lot of the kinks out, so here's hoping it wasn't really do or die time. End result is this album is alright, but far from all right.
Death's Review:
Lost in all the hoopla over the addition of a "chick," Angela Gossow, as the new lead vocalist of Arch Enemy, is the question of what ever happened to the absolutely competent former Arch Enemy vocalist, Johan Liiva. Well, now I can tell you what happened to Livva. He's back fronting a new project, Nonexist, joined by guitarist Johan Reinholdz (Andromeda) and drummer Matte Modin (Defleshed/Dark Funeral).
Of course, let me start right off by saying that Nonexist comes nowhere near delivering on the brilliance of Arch Enemy. What do you expect? Losing the brothers Amott is not inconsequential! This is not to say that Nonexist is not a solid and musically competent death metal act. They are. But the level of songwriting, guitar solos and melody I was hoping for is simply not there, at least not to the same degree as we were accustomed to on Liiva's Arch Enemy records. Nonexist guitar player Johan Reinholdz is more than merely competent, he definitely shreds. It's just that it is all so run-of-the-mill now. I love the heavy instrumental intro of "Entrance" and the solo and chorus of the first full track, "The Devil Incarnate." In fact I like this whole album of post-At the Gates Scandinavian death metal. More than anything, Nonexist are victims of my tired ears, long since oversaturated with this sound. More than the technicality here, I'm drawn to the simple riffs on this record for some reason (and the haunting clean passage "Ataraxia"), as they stand out among the pack (for example, the slow riff just before and under the mellow solo and the more chaotic riff under the more chaotic solo on "Faith").
"Let me start right off by saying that Nonexist comes nowhere near delivering on the brilliance of Arch Enemy."
This really is "good" material, and if you eat up everything "Swedish death metal" you hear, you'll definitely like this one too. The melodies are there, but they sound too simple somehow. I like the chorus riff in "A Halo Askew," but the pedal-point simple melody riffs that surround it are kind of useless. The Abyss studio/Tommy Tagtgren production sounds exactly like you expect it will. Overall, when compared to Arch Enemy's Burning Bridges, Dues Deceptor is just so fucking average, and compared to the metal scene at large, it is just so fucking expected. No surprises here. So there you have it: a solid Swedish death metal release with some musicianship, melody and guitar solos, but with overall boring riffs (although many, like the intro to "Phantoms," or the intro-- and pretty much the verse too-- to "Ebony Tower," the album's best track, are pretty killer standing alone) and surprisingly few catchy choruses. Nothing wrong with this one, but it is hard to see why this should be the benefit of your hard-earned dollars, to the exclusion of everything else, unless you just love this kind of sound.
"Nothing wrong with this one, but it is hard to see why this should be the benefit of your hard-earned dollars, to the exclusion of everything else, unless you just love this kind of sound."
Hel's Review:
While the media focal point of Nonexist may be former Arch Enemy vocalist Johan Liiva, the musical focal point is undeniably the other Johan - guitarist & studio bassist Johan Reinholdz. The guitar lines are complicated, ferocious, and the force propelling the songs forward. Accompanied by the relentless hammering of Matte Modin and the storied voice of Liiva, this trio has put together a disc chock-full of melodic death mayhem.
"This trio has put together a disc chock-full of melodic death mayhem."
There are plenty of time and tempo changes to liven things up, and a few mellow instrumentals are spaced out at even intervals, acting as intermissions from the complex guitarwork. Despite all its good points, and there are many, this disc still fails to command my full attention. Time after time, I've realized the end of the album had come, and I don't really remember hearing it. Clearly, this cannot qualify for five skulls. However, fans of Swedish melodic death, with longer attention spans than mine, may find themselves holding this album near and dear to their hearts. A very enjoyable album, and one deserving a mandatory listen - at least once.
"Time after time, I've realized the end of the album had come, and I don't really remember hearing it."
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