Artist: Vital Remains
Label: Osmose Productions
Average Rating: 4
Go to Judgment Committee Reviews of this Album
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Title: Dawn of the Apocalypse Artist: Vital Remains Label: Osmose Productions |
There are currently 2 Reader Reviews of this album.
Average Rating: 4 Go to Judgment Committee Reviews of this Album |
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Submitted by Colin W. on 6/16/00:
Vital Remains are by far one of the best American death metal bands. Forever Underground was a breakthrough album for them even though they had lost most of their original members by that time. The lineup for Forever Underground was Tony, Dave, and Joe. On the new album Dawn of the Apocalypse Joe opted not to continue with vocals to concentrate on writing more technical bass riffs. Thorns came in for vocal duties and they soon later recorded Dawn of the Apocalypse. Not surprisingly Vital Remains created a great album staying true to their sound. The only thing I questioned beforehand about this album was how was Thorns going to sound with the band. To my surprise his vocals are very similar to how the vocals were in the past for Vital Remains. Thorns did a real good job and it is kind of too bad he left and that they have had trouble keeping a vocalist since. Maybe Joe should just stick with the vocals to make things easier but that, of course, is his decision. Dawn of the Apocalypse is a bit faster than the last one and, to me, sounds like incorporating older Vital Remains with Forever Underground. The tracks are very long like the last album except for the intro and Thorns' techno type song which, in my opinion, is too out of place for Vital Remains and makes me wonder if Thorns forced them to put that song on there. Anyhow Dawn of the Apocalypse is a real great album (no surprise) and is definitely worth buying if you can locate it.
Submitted by Morbid Mario on 2/12/00:
It took a few years but at long last the new Vital Remains album is here! Luckily for us the wait was well worth it because the album is a black/death metaller's guide to properly experiencing the apocalypse. The introduction is one of the better ones I have heard in a while. A truly horrifying symphony of pure desecration in the vein of the Omen theme. Then the metallic apocalypse begins.Vital Remains have this lethal black/death sound that is an excellent mesh of Metal's two deadliest genres. This album is yet another fine example of that unholy union. The guitar riffs will sit fine with all death metalers. By the same token black metallers will be able to appreciate the same rhythms. The drums have excellent thrash beats that are perfect for headbanging and then change time into sick yet tasteful blast beats. And the necessary double bass is found aplenty here. The vocals are another fine example of why Vital Remains is so revered in both black and death metal circles. Vocalist Thorns alternates between deep death metal growls and high pitch black metal screeches that will please all.
My one complaint, however, is that the acoustic guitars should have been used more often and mixed more loudly. The best thing on Forever Underground was the acoustic portions of "I am God," and as a huge Vital Remains aficionado, I expected more of this on the new album. Mind you, the acoustic guitar brilliance of Dave Suzuki is here. I just wished it had been more up front and used more often. An asset like that should be utilized to the maximum by a band as talented as this. It should be known that as of this review's writing, original vocalist Jeff Gruslin is back with the band. This was extremely welcome news to me and those of you familiar with Let Us Pray and Into Cold Darkness will be most sadistically pleased as well. Prepare to hear this material with the only vocalist who will make you die in frozen terror.
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