Skeletonwitch - Forever Abomination Review
by Matt Hensch
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Having made waves around the metal underground from the residue of some successful tours and a few critically-acclaimed releases, Skeletonwitch continues the diabolical madness throughout "Forever Abomination," the band's fourth full-length album not even ten years into the group's conception. They perform a rather adequate class of black/thrash metal that delivers dark and barbarous riffs cooking the fiery atmosphere appropriately, but at the same time they easily stitch on some hyperborean black metal influence that freezes the sound like Lucifer's wings flapping in the deepest pit of damnation, oh so far from the light of Heaven. "Forever Abomination" sounds just like the typical product of a black/thrash metal band doing the nasty, but I'm not complaining. They have the riffs and licks to make the record a relevant, satisfying experience.Anything new or revolutionary here? Not really, but that's no reason for panic. Skeletonwitch carries the bold stride of black/thrash metal under their demonic hearts with killing riffs touching on both thrash and black metal, mutually balancing on a neat nexus of melodies and themes often incorporated in both sounds. Skeletonwitch reveals some very nice songwriting hints between the pair of metallic spirits always possessing "Forever Abomination," and it's actually a lot more developed and iconic than the 1-2-3 structuring I was anticipating; they aren't master songwriters, but credit is earned when credit is due. The songs are quick and punchy (only two breach the three-minute mark) jabs of frenzied riffs and chilling black metal condensing the priorities of Skeletonwitch into one acceptable piece of riff-loaded madness. Quick, simple, and electric. I am somewhat irked by the mundane rasps which pass off as vocals; anyone and anything could perform these one-dimensional shrieks with little effort. Not to discredit the dude for doing his thing, but some spice would be great, really anything to jazz up the microphone's flat creation. In the end, it's a Skeletonwitch album, and expecting something completely contemporary or progressive would be foolish. Not that that's a bad thing; these dudes come off successfully despite the lack of specific monuments within their style. You'll definitely enjoy "Forever Abomination" if you're familiar with the group's works or just desire something that won't douse itself in useless crap. Skeletonwitch is Skeletonwitch, and "Forever Abomination" is Skeletonwitch.
Skeletonwitch - Forever Abomination Rating:7.0
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