No argument, Benton and Co. have made their black mark on the extreme death scene and their first two albums (Deicide and Legion) are considered classics in the genre. Over time, the band's credibility took a hit with feeble output and a scene that nearly left them behind. The point is, their stock has sunk slowly over time. Fast-forward to 2006 with a refreshed lineup that features (for the first time) two career shredders: ex-Cannibal Corpse axe Jack Owen and former Death/Iced Earth guitarist Ralph Santolla. Both have escalated the value of Deicide to heights unreached with previous incarnations of the band. So if Deicide were intent on making the entire scene stand at attention with jaws wide open in awe, The Stench Of Redemption is the album that had to be constructed. The normal, short, bible-bashing ditties have been sacrificed for properly executed, near-epic length battalions of the beast that turn Christ's cross upside down and plunges it into the earth's blistering core to burn and be reduced to ashes to the end of eternity. The prime examples of this chameleon-like change are 'Desecration' and 'Walk With The Devil In Dreams You Behold' as Owen and Santolla cut swaths of leads through each song, making them air guitar-inviting and brutally appetizing. The punchy, blastbeat-ridden remnants of Deicide's past can be seen in 'Homage For Satan', 'Death To Jesus' and 'Never To Be Seen Again' - but the tone is different. This is extreme death metal for the purists, not just laughable anti-Christian rants. But you must be sitting in Satan's throne for the closer. Ironically, think Priest, yes Judas Priest, both the band and the disciple that turned on Christ. Close your eyes and the Tipton/Downing team could be leading you down hell's path. 'The Lord's Sedition' has a monumental, haunting twin-lead intro that slowly builds to what may be the heaviest segue of the year. It's mystifying, heart-stopping and ultimately classy. You expect Deicide to beat up organized religion, but musically The Stench Of Redemption is way beyond their scope of vision and very few acts will be able to match this imperial commandment this year.