Originally written by Ryan Plunkett
With the release of Nihility in 2002, Decapitated had a lot to live up to. The Negation is easily one of the most anticipated albums this year. Would they falter or would they take their sound to the next level. Well after repeated listens, I have to say this is their best release yet. The young shredders from Poland have not let me down in the slightest, taking their songwriting to the next level.
Starting off with the blazing fast track “The Fury”, this perfectly sets the tone for the heaviness that will encompass you when you first pop The Negation into your sound system. It is all about the riffs, the mother fucking riffs and this disc has some killer ones. Let me tell you, some of them are just so goddamned crunchy it is not even funny. Sure some may not be super-ultra blow your mind technical, but when they are this solid it just does not matter. Don’t let that make you think that Decapitated has dropped-off in the technicality department though, there’s just as much shredding as ever (just listen to the killer solos); it just seems to me that with this outing they focused more on creating memorable songs. This album also seems to have a faster feel to it. Just look at tracks like “The Fury” and “Lying and Weak”. Along with these faster songs come some crushing riffs. Look at the second main riff in “Three Dimensional Defect” for instance. It is plainly open string picking, but combined with the crunch of the china on the drums and the heaviness of the riff it makes for one of my favorite moments of the album. Another classic riff is the third riff in “Lying and Weak”. Laying on the hurt and then sliding down the fret board with technical prowess, it is just another enjoyable moment from a solid fucking disc. Not forgetting to take time to slow down and bring on the heavy, the title track will pound your skull into dust. I cannot emphasize the heaviness of this track enough. Another thing I have to mention is Vogg’s killer guitar solos. They never really get boring and make for a good listen. One thing that really brings this album together is the very apparent loving of the china that Vitek has on the drums. Its crushing sound adds to the heaviness tenfold and makes for the perfect compliment. And on that note, the drumming is awesome. It definitely does not sound as processed as Decapitated’s last outing. The snare has some punch, the cymbals are very audible, and the double kicks sound less computerized without losing their defining feel. Sauron’s voice also sounds a notch higher, but I think it works perfectly.
So, yes, in this humbled reviewer’s opinion, The Negation album takes Decapitated to the next level and shows that their reign as kings in the world of death metal in its current state is just beginning. The razor-sharp guitar tone, killer drum production, combined with the ability to craft more memorable songs has made The Negation a must buy for any fan of extreme metal.
