Who’d have thought…Germany’s Lifeless would return with their third full length album, and my opening statement refers to a rotten death metal band in the vein of the Swedish masters, however as with Dismember in their later years, some of the guitar pieces here are stunning. Backed with an ever present barrage of brutality, ‘The Occult Mastery’ develops on their extensive talent previously laid down on wax to perhaps include some of their greatest and more wide ranging material, without changing what they do best.
The instrumental is apt and positioned nicely (‘Interlude Dystopia’), It doesn’t really matter what track you choose, each one retains your attention, but does stick around too long. The album itself is about the right playing time, although I was surprised it wasn’t longer having got used to such efforts in the past by many others. A good choice though and it fits on one side of a cassette too! The howl and scream at the start of the title track really stirs your soul and wakes you the hell up. ‘Delusions of Grandeur’ is another full force track, possessing the typical running riff you hear from time to time, but the guitar work is so busy under the vocals, you can’t help but isolate them and rejoice. The production of course is hefty and razor sharp. It captures the time changes and the complete band package perfectly, even the rapid switch to acoustic occasionally, that why I was confused with the instrumental. ‘Insanity Reigns’ balances the most of the release, melodic riff intro, harsh vocal and stance at mid-tempo, a touch of double time, and a whole barrage of bass without having to go into too much groove, the sustain is enough for this.
‘From Chaos Our Order Shall Rise’ sums up the release in both its title and its presentation. Lifeless are a big name for me in this underground field, they have developed and moved on without repeating past masters and past releases. Essential on many levels for death metal fans.
(8/10 Paul Maddison)
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