HeavyHardMetalmania: Defeated Sanity`s PASSAGES INTO DEFORMITY a f***ing beast of an album!

Germanys Defeated Sanity is a band that I have heard a song here and a song there in the past, but never really taken the time to really listen to that closely. Not that I didn't like what heard, I actually enjoyed what I heard a lot, but there is just too many bands and just too little time. But tell you what, I have been missing out. The Germans latest album Passages Into Deformity, that I have been listening to the last few days is a f***ing beast of an album. I think this is one of those albums where everything is just right. Its brutal with a lot of blast beats, but they do not overdo it, they add the groove and the really heavy parts, and together it all gets to be a very nice smorgasbord of brutal awesomeness (smörgåsbord in Swedish mind you).

One thing that really caught my attention was the technical guitar parts and how tastefully they are done. Don't get me wrong the stuff is pretty insane but it does not get to the point where it is just guitar masturbation for the sake of being technical. Since this is a trap I think a lot bands fall into, like "hey look how fast I can play, this is so advanced you need a masters degree in physics to understand" and I go, "yeah, but.... it sounds like shit". You all know what I'm talking about, bands that sounds like everyone is just soloing but there is nothing of value being played. And this is not the case here, the technical stuff is enjoyable to listen too! Don't get me wrong I'm a big fan of many other technical death metal bands, but a lot of the newer bands loose me, it is just too much.

Sometimes it feels like Defeated Sanity just decided to take a jazz break in all the brutality, and the awesome thing is that it works. It's a very nice little change of pace when these parts kicks in, take the part around 3 min in the song The purging.

The guitars has a nice crisp tone that makes the technical stuff understandable and the heavy stuff, well heavy.

Ok, I just got to get this of my chest, the snare, oh the snare is amazing on this album, at times it is like the guy is using a brick, during the groovy/slam parts, when he hits the snare just right, I'm not going to lie, I had to stop and collect myself for a moment. And while we are at the topic of drums, the dude behind the kit on this album, well my good sir, my hat goes off to you, bravo. This guy is fast, precise and got the technical chops down. Just check out the ending of the song Martyrium, every time I hear it, it puts a smile to my face. The drums overall sound very nice, not to polished and not triggered to hell.

Next instrument: bass! oh the those sweet low tones. And on this album you can actually hear the bass, bliss! And it not just rumbling around somewhere in the background, you can hear it clear and the bass player is doing some killer stuff. The bass in not just following the guitar, a lot of times it goes off on its own, and takes a tasty little trip, just listen a bit in to track nr 3 Verblendung, epic. But this album is filled with cool bass lines and nice fills. As a lover of that sweaty funk, for me this is a big plus.

The vocals are competently done and they fit the music really well. Its low guttural sewage gurgling, if you are a fan of this style you know what I'm talking about. In my opinion they get a bit monotonous at times, I would like to have had some variety, but what you get works just fine, and since the album overall is so great it is almost a non issue. One thing that you will notice in the song that I mentioned before: Verblendung, is the almost industrial sounding ending, cool touch that caught my attention.

To wrap this up: Defeated Sanity have with Passages Into Deformity put out a real monster of an album. For fans of brutal/technical death metal, I think this is an album that is a must have. Amazing songs, musicianship and a production that is to notch.

By
Sweden`s Wilhelm Lindh, "Portuguese by adoption," guitar player, composer and owner of the Doom / Death Metal band The Gardnerz, reviews here in HeavyHardMetalmania. Careful and professional analysis to the music and albums with suggestions of what there is to see and hear ... not to be missed. "The wisdom is found in the extremes, all extreme Metal here!".