After three long years, setbacks and foul-ups, the newest Immolation epic Failures For Gods has finally been released and for the first time in ages I can honestly say it has been well worth the wait. Failures For Gods is, in a word, amazing. This is the type of CD I hope for every time I check my mailbox; brutal, energetic, angry, technical and evil! I’ve read several reviews with regards to the poor production on this CD, and many people have been complaining about it, but I honestly don’t see the production on the CD being a negative in the least, if anything it adds rawness to the album which makes it that much better. Opening up this eight song soon-to-be cult classic is "Once Ordained", which opens with a slow rumble, gradually building until it reaches a musical explosion, pure aural armageddon. The track has it’s slow moments, and flashes of speed all woven together masterfully. Melody, brutality and technicality joined as one with the guttural snarls of Ross Dolan expressing the band’s displeasure with the beliefs of Christianity. This is soon followed by the most groove-laden and catchy tune "No Jesus, No Beast", which is so perfectly played, one can’t help but growl along with the chorus "’Can you hear us… death to Jesus’", I must have listened to this song at least 200 times alone, since I first got the CD in May. The title track is the exact opposite, the music is extremely chaotic and very difficult for unrefined death metal fans to be able to fully appreciate, it does, however, fit in with prior Immolation material, so fans of their earlier work should definitely be able to appreciate and get into this song. The next three tracks; "Unsaved", "God Made Filth" and "Stench Of High Heaven" blend perfectly as a musical continuation of 1995’s Here In After, and is filled with the technical brutality that has earned the band cult status in the underground. "Your Angel Died" is another extremely solid track, in the same vein as the opening two tracks, drenched with hatred, brutality and unparalleled musicianship. Closing out the album is "The Devil I Know", whose slightly higher tone and slower pace is the perfect ending to an already amazing album. This album is not for the novice metal fan, this is the type of CD you’ll need to listen to twenty or thirty times before you’ll be able to fully appreciate it and be drawn into it, but once you do you’ll love it! Immolation are by far one of the top acts in the underground metal scene today and Failures For Gods only helps solidify their standing.

Written By: Teufel