Originally written by Patrick Dawson
Fifteen years is a long time for a band to rip down the same path whether they enjoy playing the material at this point or not. To still produce this much fury in a live setting is simply god damn impressive. If for no other reason than the modicum of respect they deserve for persevering in stalwart fashion, Impaled Nazarene have been given a live album as a retrospective look at their seven album body count. Literally spanning the entirety of their career, longtime fans will delight in hearing a varied fare ranging from the aged classic “Sadogoat” to more modern tracks like “The Endless War” performed in all their glory.
Recorded in late 2004 at a concert in their native Suomi, Death Comes in 26 Carefully Selected Pieces is a wonderful and accurate representation of the intensity this band present up close and in person. The blistering punk fury of “Armageddon Death Squad” exemplifies the frenetic intensity of a band in their element, in front of dedicated fans and ready to give their all for a night of metal. That intensity comes at the cost of perfect tightness as a musical machine, the singer nearly gasps for breath now and then as he vomits guts like a sea cucumber and the guitar-drum dichotomy slips now and then like a well worn transmission. None of this could be labeled unprofessional or a fuckup mind you, merely a band having a go at it with reckless abandon.
26 tracks could very well be the new definition of a “fuckton” of music. The length may even be this album’s one downside if you are willing to overlook a slightly dense production. Neither element detracted from my enjoyment in the least but what is album reviewing if not the glorification of knit picking? Renditions of “The Horned and the Horny” and “Motorpenis” flesh out this raging cacophony of evil infused punk and if you manage to stumble tired and drained across the post-68-minute Finish (pun?) line the wake of closing song “Winter War” will surely leave the listener feeling they got their monies worth.
