You have to scratch your head and wonder what the world is coming to when a band with as much talent to burn as Italy's Carnal Rapture seems unable to get passed the demo stage. I mean c'mon these death metal techies have been kicking around since the early 90's for god's sake and their latest release, simply sent to me as Promo 2008, is their 3rd demo!! I have no idea what's been going on behind the scenes, only that there was a ten year hiatus between the first two demos. The good news is there has been more activity within the band's camp these past six years, and more importantly they seem to have finally found a stable lineup, something you definitely need if you're even halfway serious about raping and pillaging your way through the metal universe.
There are a couple of things that immediately stand out on this five song collection. First of all the sound of the recording itself should merit someone raising a couple of frosty cold one's to salute both the band and whomever was responsible for recording this session. In today's digital age where compression sucks the very life out of the music just so the faders can be pushed to the max, it's great to come across a recording where you're able to clearly hear each and every instrument evenly distributed in the mix. The second thing which comes to mind when listening to this music is just how you'd go about classifying it. Sure there's a distinctly death and math metal feel permeating throughout these compositions as the harsh vocal stylings of Emilio Trilḷ coupled with the lethal twin, technical guitar assault of both Trilḷ and Tom Hopewell drive these blistering tracks, but drummer Daniele Belardo's jazzy rhythmic shuffles also adds a different color to the music. There honestly isn't one bad track to be found here as the ever shifting tempo changes of tracks "Hate You And Adore You", "Precious Time" and "Arms Tied Back" should give the average metal fan more than enough pulverizing, high octane riffs to get excited about.
All in all this is a very solid offering with excellent musicianship and well written songs that are executed with razor sharp precision. Hopefully these guys will stick around and keep at it and someone, somewhere will take notice and offer these guys a much deserved deal because there's definitely room for more bands as talented as Carnal Rapture.
Track Listing
1) Precious Time
2) Caught Off Guard
3) Hate You And Adore You
4) Poison My Soul
5) Arms Tied Back