FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE - Labyrinth
August 30, 2013, 11 years ago
(Nuclear Blast)
Symphonic death metal: the idea is so simple, one wonders why we didn't see it coming many (frozen) moons ago. Despite the symphony, and unlike their rhapsodic countrymen, the members of Italy's FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE keep it brutally brutal throughout, this group having long ago outgrown the BEHEMOTH worship of its early albums and forged an identity that is certifiably its own. Meticulously executed and impressively written, Labyrinth is anything but a maze, as this record's massive scope reveals itself early and follows through, Fleshgod Apocalypse reveling in the chance to dissertate artfully and hatefully at the same time. Highlights 'Pathfinder', 'The Fall Of Asterion' and 'Under Black Sails' are the sorts of songs the term 'epic' was created to describe, as the juxtaposition of absolute pageantry and venom converge to become statements that are undoubtedly Italian in their soaring-church-spire drama, their dead serious explosions of flare, their proudly outlandish emphasis on style and their refusal to forgive, in any capacity (lest you worry that I base that assessment on hollow stereotypes, just take a look at my last name). Building on the critical success of its growing legacy, Fleshgod Apocalypse's call to arms is one that should be heeded, with no remorse.
