'Penetralia' although showing many qualities of the then already established death metal sound is still at least slightly different from other Swedish death metal albums of the time and as well quite different from what the band would create when they became a three piece in '94. A lot of the riffs have a distinctive and diverse quality to them; ranging from simple yet heavy death metal licks to thrashier catchier riffs and darker tremolo picked moments throughout that sound fairly black metal in their delivery, and there's even a few slower doom riffs that add a sense of gloom. The solos although quick in their delivery are effective and enticing to behold.
The vocals performed by Masse Broberg (AKA Emperor Magus Caligula) are quite different from other Swedish bands in that his voice is considerably lower and tougher in its delivery and fairly wild and untrained, if that makes any sense, but I like it and it just adds a more chaotic feeling to the record. Lars' drum work is fairly standard, nothing really flashy or mind blowing, just a lot of simple beats and patterns and a whole lot of blast beats, while Mikael's bass work is basically non-existent. The production and guitar tone is also quite different from the then well known Swedish Sunlight Studios sound, in fact its fairly reminiscent of the Floridian Morrisound production approach, which just goes to show that Peter might have been going to some great lengths to sound different from his neighbors.
What's a bit interesting about the album though is the fact that it seems to get better as it progress through, I mean by the time you reach, 'God is a Lie' & 'Left to Rot' your bangin' your head to some serious freakin' awesome death metal here. The same could be said for, 'To Escape is to Die' with its highly melodic parts, as well, 'To Take the Throne' is massively similar and one of the albums highlights too, while the final and title track, which features Peter as vocalist is a pummeling affair of infectious early 90's death metal.
I also can't help but comment on Dan Seagrave's immense cover artwork and the many layers and depth it holds within it. I seriously don't know what it is or what it it means, but I see tentacles, sea creatures, slabs of meaty thingers nailed to the walls, little creepy demons, leaves and a pool of water that leads to some big mother fucking alien! I love it and everything this man was drawing back in those days!
'Penetralia' is probably not as catchy nor does it stick out immediately as much as a lot of other death metal records from the time, but after a few listens it really gets under your skin and you see it for what it is - a great and now classic death metal record.
This album is a classic. It was such an impressive debut at the time and Masse had this evil sounding voice that just made you sit up and say, "Woah!" If there is one complaint I have, it is the drumming on some of the tracks sound too mechanical. Like a drum machine was used, you know. But despite that, this is one beast of an album.
ReplyDeleteI guess I never noticed that, but now that you point it out. Some of the songs have drums done by Peter, which could actually mean Peter used a drum machine, but who knows for sure? But, yeah, otherwise definitely a classic.
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