Releasedate 31.05.2024

Everything Decays started out under a different bandname, but have since released two singles and now, an EP. The EP with the forever-to-be-remembered impossibly long name ‘Requiem 1: The Serial Killer’s Symphony of Liberation, Deliverance and Relief, that is. Or, Requiem 1 for short. Let’s head into this serial killers tale and hear what we we thought of it.

Requiem 1

Requiem 1 is a concept album that tells the tale of a serial killer from beginnging to end. From the start of the tale with The Monster That You Made Of Me to the inevitable Suicide, and the Legacy he (or she) leaves, the tale is complete. Expect deep growls, powerful screams and at times, spoken word, and haunting female voices. Everything Decays classify themselves as groovy deathcore. With two vocalists to take on that role, expect heavy, groovy tracks with the occasional blastbeat and breakdown.

The Creation

The Creation: The Monster That You Made Of Me kicks off the album with groovy death metal right away. Everything Decays play groovy deathcore, so none of that grimy sounding guitars but instead, crisp and clear sound and groovy riffs. If you would have labeled it modern deathmetal, I would have bought it too. It’s fast until the break at the very end. The ‘No more hiding from me, anymore’ part and the groovy part right after leaves us wanting for more.

The Addiction

After the creation, we fall into The Addiction. We hear a whole different side of the female vocalist, and a different side of Everything Decays. Again we have the groovy repeating riffs, but we have to wait till the second part of the song for the blastbeats and the fast chugs. This song is very well thought-out, with the lyrics and the music complementing each other well. The gang vocals ‘there’s always something new’ seem haunting in light of the track. And because it’s a concept album, the vocal at the end ease us into the next track ‘The Collection’ with the lyrics: Welcome to my gallery.

The Collection

Not that there’s anything easy with The Collection. It is probably the most moshable track on the album right off the start. Everything Decays manages to combine the fast deathmetal parts with the groovy riffs well. It makes for an interesting listen where you want to bang your head and smash all the furniture around you. The vocalist shows again on this track that she is way more than a one-trick pony. Again the clean vocals, fitting the groove metal vibe well, shine throught at the final part of the track, which leads us to Suicide.

The Suicide

The Suicide kicks off with the blastbeats and a very poppy chordprogression for the heaviness of the subject. Besides the expected growls, there are almost rap-like spoken word parts on this track as well, adding to the story. The riffs on this track are interesting, becuase they consistently aren’t what you expect. From being just one note off of what you’d logically expect in the mainriff, to bringing groovy parts where you wouldn’t expect, or just the poppy chordprogression in the intro. Everything Decays manages to make this track interesting to listen too. And with the ending of the track after ‘ We became the monsters, lurking in the dark’, or just that whole part, it’s almost progressive metal.

The Legacy

The Legacy was a track that we’ve heard before. I remember talking about this track on our tiplijst, being surprised by the vocals and the riffs. Again, an almost progressive track with a lot of variation and interesting parts, groovier than some of the others.

Final thoughts

Requiem 1 is a super interesting album to listen too, cause there’s a lot of surprises, even though I spoil many of them in the review. If you’re into groove metal, definitely give this album a listen. There are deathcore references in the album, but that’s certainly not the mainvibe. The most interesting track to me is probaly The Suicide. However, I’’d recommend listening to this album as a whole, because you’d get the full story and the tracks make a lot more sense that way.

You can find Everything Decays on Facebook or in our database.

Tracklisting:

The Creation: The Monster That You Made Of Me
The Addiction: The Thrill Of The Hunt
The Collection: The Soulless Will Remain
The Suicide: A Last Act of Atonement
The Legacy:Transcended My Mortal Coil

Releasedate: 14.05.2024

Can Abyss was a new name on our radar when we heard of their album ‘Dedication’, but it’s a band that has been active since 1994. It just took them 30 years to release this album, so it was definitely worth the listen. Let’s dive in!

Dedication

First of all, dig the name. Can Abyss has released the five-song album ‘Dedication’ and it’s a great collection of songs. Fret not! Even though it’s only five songs, the shortest song is 5:33 long, so you’ll have plenty of time to listen.

That Lighthouse

The album starts with ‘That Lighthouse’ and what a beginning of this album. The song starts with a powerful riff that immediately has you banging your head to the song. Seven minutes may seem long but they definitely know how to keep you invested. The song is well-constructed and well-written. Towards the end of the song, you’ll be surprised with a jazzy mellow piece that may leave some people wondering what’s going on. But hold your horses and wait for it. You won’t be disappointed.

The Wolf You Feed The Most

‘The Wolf You Feed The Most’ starts off with an aggressive and heavy start with nice and dirty dissonant chords. It takes you through the song and also has a more mellow and chill bridge in the song. Whereas the melody is very pleasant to listen to, the lead that is played over it feels a bit simple and underwhelming. But that is honestly the only criticism I have for this song.

A Mötorhead Who Loved Death

‘A Mötorhead Who Loved Death’ is the longest song of the album, passing the eight-minute mark. The track is almost completely instrumental but it’s a work of art. A soothing start that leads into a prog-ish bit that lasts for a good while. Though it doesn’t change too much until the solo starts it doesn’t feel too long for some reason. The catchy riff keeps you invested (or at least kept me invested) and evolves into the final stage of the song, where they give you some words of goodbye.

Organized Mime

The fourth song is ‘Organized Mime’. These folks definitely have their wordplay on point. This song also consists of powerful guitar play but definitely allows the bass player to shine as well. With very cool bass licks that are accompanied by beautiful guitar melodies, this song is a witness to their ability in songwriting (where were those beautiful melodies in the second song?!). Followed by an enticing guitar solo and a great heavy outro that takes you back to the starting riff.

Death of a Star

Last but definitely not least is ‘Death of a Star’. This is a massive and strong song as well. They know how to construct their songs well, that much is also shown again in this last song. The song casually progresses from one part to the other and takes you on the final journey of the album. They chose to start more complex and mellow down a little towards the end which brings you to a nice ending to the song, as well as the album.

Final Words

All in all, ‘Dedication’ is a great album for anyone who likes heaviness with the influences of Death Metal and Black Metal. Can Abyss knows their stuff when it comes to songwriting and I’m definitely waiting for more of them to be released. Another very important thing I would like to point out is the mix. The natural feel in the production has been executed meticulously and wonderfully. What makes me really happy is that I can hear the bass guitar well because it’s definitely not the “simple following of the chords” but very interesting and well-executed bass lines.

Keep it up, Can Abyss. Great job!

Want to know more about Can Abyss? Find them on Facebook.