Deadsea Review
by Mark Hensch
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One of my favorite things about being a music journalist is being on the frontlines of innovation. As a writer, one is there week in, week out, constantly waiting for the newest development in the world of music. It is rare, but occasionally, something truly original in every sense of the word comes along.
Deadsea is one of those bands. I have been listening to their self-titled album since its late 2007 release, and, quite frankly, I have no idea what to call it. Though firmly rooted in doom, the band maintains an arena rock flair for melodies, a technicality found in brutal death metal, bursts of speed reminiscent of thrash, and a spontaneous energy most often found in noise rock. Influences are so faint it is nearly impossible to spot them, and when one does, none of it makes sense. Bands like Mastodon, Celtic Frost, Slayer, The F*cking Champs, Trouble, Iron Maiden, Carcass, and Lord Weird Slough Feg crop up, but what does it mean?
The answer, I think, is that one can best create the new by mixing most of the old. Deadsea is straight heavy metal in all its myriad forms, various subgenres subverted into a labyrinthine blender of dynamic, positive sound. This is wicked, exuberant music, the kind so damn good on its own a tag is not necessary for it.
The ever-shifting histrionics of "Northwitch" are a great example. Soothing ambience blossoms into a rocking, mid-paced doom barnstormer ala classic Trouble. From here, the band transitions into up-tempo riffs with tons of fiery, feel-good guitar licks and some wistful galloping. Just as a person starts feeling comfortable, the song ignites into a technical thrash monster, all before collapsing later into a seething breakdown and some catchy war sludge passages.
"Coming Home" kicks in right away with a vicious thrash assault worthy of Testament yet laced with some classic heavy metal melodies. This is a song that has it all---breakneck, careening circle pits, abrasive melodies, and Necrophagist levels of technical guitar abuse.
"Killing Faith (Crying Death)" attacks like a modern update of Slayer with a crustier bent. Featuring down and dirty riffing, this swings between the sandblasted grime of Mastodon into the hellacious fury of Venom and back again.
"Assault" lives up to its name, attacking with a swirling tornado of low-end speed metal. Brief as a grind track but much more doom-laden, it serves as a brief respite from the true chaos to come.
Said holocaust arrives in the form of "Vampyre's Kiss." Raw, swirling noise is the order of the day here, at least until the song expands into a progressive rock fireworks display. Replete with chugging riffs and gloriously fiery solos, "Kiss" ends with a "Moby Dick" worthy drum solo and a spiraling descent into madness. The disc next takes a turn into the epic with its last two cuts.
The first, "Frozen Rivers," sprouts from chilling ambience into a slow-burning heavy metal anthem. This song showcases Deadsea's doom roots best, playing out thickset riffs at glacial paces. Glazed over with plenty of hypnotic leads, "Frozen Rivers" shimmers, cracks, thaws, and roars.
The second, "The Morning Frost," begins as a fragile acoustic piece. Folksy and serene, powerful rolling thunder riffs ebb-and-flow behind the whispering chords. Slowly but surely "Morning Frost" builds into an immensely satisfying stomp of metal madness, and I love it. This is a progressive song that never once sacrifices catchiness, wickedness, or intensity any step of the way.
No matter how often we music critics try, sometimes a band simply cannot be labeled or stamped. Deadsea is an album which sounds like so many different bands at once a sound has been crafted in the process. Keep your eyes on this band; chances are they will have invented a genre in a couple of years.
Deadsea's Deadsea
Northwitch
Coming Home
Killing Faith (Crying Death)
Assault
Vampyre's Kiss
Frozen Rivers
The Morning Frost
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Deadsea Rating:9.0
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