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Monday, March 17, 2014

Brood Of Hatred - Skinless Agony - Album Review

Year: 2014

Though I know that metal exists all over the world, Africa is one continent that I am not so familiar with in terms of metal. Recently I encountered a band from Tunisia, before which I didn’t even know that they had metal there. I decided to give this band a listen and since then, this band has not left my playlist. The band that I am talking about is Brood of Hatred. This is a band that managed to shatter all my expectations and offer something (almost) new.



What started out as Muhammed Melki’s one man project in 2010, slowly gained momentum and today it stands as a four piece death metal outfit. The band recently released its debut full length entitled ‘Skinless Agony’ on Crime Records. The record title leads one to believe that this is a usual death metal affair filled with gore and blood. But this proves to be an entirely different form of beast indeed.

To get an idea of what this band sounds like, think of Gorguts type atmosphere and mix it with some semi technical riffing patterns of Immolation. To this, add as many hooks as possible and top it off with some unusual melodies and progression. This is the type of death metal that this band plays. It is more intelligent that your everyday run off the mill death metal act. This is a band that talks about the philosophy of life on earth and the way it is impacted by technology, leading to the ultimate annihilation.

The guitar chemistry between Muhammed Bouchir and Melik Melek Khelifa is as tight as it can get. While one plays distorted tremolos at hyper speeds, the other overlays it with some arpeggio like riffs rendered in a clean guitar tone. The end result is a semi technical sounding guitar work that has both harshness and melody to it. The atmosphere adds a twisted touch to the proceedings.

Front man Muhammed Melki has a deep growl and he makes mighty good use of it. He also handles the bass on this record and his work is nothing short of marvellous. The drummer Hazem Jaziri handles the progressions and change in the tempos very easily and he also has a mean double bass action going on through most parts of the album.

Considering that this is just a debut, the band has outdone all expectations. Every track is as good as it gets, which is quite rare for a band that is just starting out. Production and mixing of the album is done well with great use of the atmosphere.

The band’s promo states ‘Expect some haunting atmospheres guiding you through progressive journeys and some unconventional writings inspired by strange state of mind that characterizes our band’. This is not an empty claim at all. The band backs up this statement in the perfect manner and I couldn’t have put it better myself. This is a must listen for any fan of death metal and this is band with a huge potential.

Rating: 90%  


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