Ever since I first heard their self-titled demo tape back when I was first starting my zine in 1996 I’ve been a huge fan of BesiegeD. Their demo was eight tracks of brilliantly brutal death metal, completely original material, double and triple vocal assaults and well written lyrics. At the time I felt it was one of the best demos I’ve heard to date. Unfortunately the same cannot be said for their debut CD AkeldamA. The production on the album is horrendous, in my opinion the person in charge of the mixing and production of this album should be maimed for butchering this band’s excellent work. AkeldamA consists of seven re-recorded tracks from their demo and two new songs. The re-recorded tracks are musically much tighter than the originals, but the sound is so muddled it’s actually painful to listen to. The two new tracks "Intercessor" and "Misanthrope God" are well written, original songs, unfortunately dulled by the production. The vocal mix is reminiscent of the vocals on Amon’s Feasting The Beast demo. As a whole this album is a setback for the band, however they are planning on recording a new EP in the near future which I’m sure will be of a far better recording quality than AkeldamA. Don’t count out BesiegeD just yet, they will be back with a vengeance. I recommend picking up their demo tape and waiting for the new EP, it will most definitely be worth the wait!

Written By: Teufel