Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Do you remember 6th grade?  It’s not old school, it’s the beginning of middle school.  That’s where Dying reside.  These spaniards deliver the goods when it comes to pure death metal the way it once was.  This is how death metal sounded when I fell in love with it.  In 1993 I went from Napalm Death and Sepultura into the world of floridian death metal.  Surprise, surprise, Cannibal Corpse was the first band I got into.  After that, it was all over.  My days of listening to heavy doses of rap shriveled up and died shortly thereafter.  Kool Keith still rules though.

Dying is an unsigned band from Spain that deserves recognition and a proper label.  Born From Impurity is a mix of Florida, New York, and Swedish death metal spanning the nineties.  You’ll hear Entombed, Pessimist, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel…the inspiration is endless.  This contributes to its fresh sound in a non-contemporary way.  The only thing modern about this album is the Phlegeton artwork which graces the cover.  His art, like his vocal skill, is always amazing.  There is such a blend of influences and time frames on Born From Impurity that you will find yourself fully immersed in what these four players have accomplished.  The interplay between the two guitarists really sets that middle school vibe.  The drumming is sick as hell.  The heavy use of his china cymbal sets the sound a bit apart from the overall sound of the band’s influences which gives it a blackened feel.  The vocals and bass delivered by Negro are very solid.  To imagine the vocals, combine Chris Barnes’ approach from Tomb Of The Mutilated and The Bleeding.  It would be the transition that never happened from unintelligible to the cleaned up grizzly bear.  As Borat would say, “I like.”

The intro track had me wondering.  It incorporates some arco bass synth with octave down demonic utterances, in a ritualistic manner, followed by a tastefully crying baby.  From there it is just all killer and no filler.  There are even a few massive breakdowns, reminicent of Suffocation.  Dying provide a fresh package of pure death metal that needs no modern flair.  The production on this self-released disc is perfect for that 90’s sound.  A nod toward the past is becoming the norm these days, but few pull it off as well as Dying.  If you are looking for a bit of uncontrived nostalgia, this is for you.

Review bySilky Bravado