Heavydeath: Eternal Sleepwalker

I'm tempted to say that the name of this band is more a description than a title. What I mean is that the name evokes the music more precisely than some other names do. I think most listeners will agree—this is heavy death metal, nothing more, nothing less. There's no filler, only heavy music played to perfection. Speaking of no filler, the members of Heavydeath pride themselves on their stripped down model of writing and recording. The material here is performed by a trio—guitar, bass, drums—with only occasional vocals. As is the case with many trios, though, the music is often larger than life, bigger than three individuals should be able to make together. More impressive still, the band did not use any overdubs in the recording. This is heavy music played as close to the source as possible. Such efforts are important because they remind us that some forms of extreme metal come from real human actions, not studio reproductions and tricks. Don't get me wrong, I love all that stuff, but I love the raw power of music that's recorded as close to live as possible. I also don't want to weigh in here on the debate over what makes something "authentic," but I will say that I like stripped down music when it's performed well. And in this case, the music is performed beautifully. This is heavy music done right.

Sometimes I joke about how every metal album seems to have the word "sacrifice" somewhere in the lyrics. This album does, too; unlike other bands, though, Heavydeath makes the idea of sacrifice sound incredibly dangerous. The music carries real weight here, giving something extra to the heft and force of the vocals.

As for the music, it's great. The riffs are big and bold and, oh man, they just chug along with a wonderful distortion and vibe. At times, there's a trance-like thing happening that I can't help but love. If you like doom metal or if you like heavy—really heavy—death metal, this is exactly what you are looking for.

Please listen to this album. It is bold and heavy and powerful and beautiful. I'll have this one in my rotation for months and months.

Track Listing:
1. Ascending
2. Road to the Fire
3. Bow Down
4. Eat the Sun
5. Eternal Sleepwalker
6. Heavy as Death
7. Beyond the Riphean Mountains

Added: March 4th 2015
Reviewer: Carl Sederholm
Score:
Related Link: Bandcamp Page
Hits: 1969
Language: english

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