Summon - Fallen (2005)

The first time I heard Summon, the blackened death thrashers from Lansing, Michigan, was about a decade ago at Milwaukee Metalfest. I remember not having a clue who they were, but being quite impressed by the energy and tightness of their set, and that's notable since Metalfest was infamous for its horrible sound. Putting in my own time headbanging and cheering I finally took it upon myself to ask who they were, and got a response from a mostly drunken metalhead that went a little something like, "This is fucking Summon, you mother fucker!" And I made sure to buy their album soon as they finished.

Summon's history can be traced as far back as '91, though from '92-'94 the members were also involved in the legendary Masochist, and as a result nothing happened with Summon until '95 when the 'Fire Turns Everything... Black' demo surfaced. I'll admit the first three albums released by Summon didn't do much for me, I remember them being muddled with production mishaps and sometimes really dull song writing, but by the time they released 'And the Blood Runs Black' they'd inked a deal with Moribund Records and put together one hell of a dynamic and hard hitting album. As much as I enjoy that one their fifth and final album, 'Fallen' is Summon at their finest.

Of these sins I have become

This release continued to solidify the band's status as one of the better exponents of the black-death thrash metal sub-genre, at least here in the US. Every one of the songs on this album is played at a very fast tempo, with great black metal style shrieks, vicious and precise riffs, awesome drumming and an overall feeling of energy that few other thrash bands can match. A fair but not exactly spot on comparison is Absu's masterwork, 'Tara,' since both album are overly energetic, tight and technical, catchy and downright fucking destroy everything in their paths. Also this is pretty much the type of music I'd like to create with a few a buddies providing the chance.

Most of the songs are in the 03:00-03:30 range which in my opinion adds to the value of this album. Summon comes, conquers and says fuck you all in a mere thirty five minutes. Thrash songs are not suitable for the most part for extended length pieces, beacuse the riffs and the chorus sections would be too repetitive (Dark Angel's 'Time Does Not Heal' is a prime example). The tenth track titled, 'Loud As Hell Fast As Fuck' is probably the most old school thrash song you will find here, though its also the weakest because it completely breaks the formula of the rest of the album, even going so far as to use entirely clean vocals. Songs like 'Mindrot' or '...Of These Sins' are more representative of the overall sound and characteristic of this CD, since it has more tempo changes, more powerful blasting and great riffs.

You should not expect any of the features sometimes found on black/death albums though, such as, long introductions, acoustic passages, soundscapes and interludes. This is a very direct, in your face and aggressive slab of metal that tries (and does) very hard to leave you senseless and at the same time energized for more, so it all makes for a very enjoyable listen with just the right amount of songs and overall time duration to it's credit.

If you enjoy blackened death-thrash metal that sounds very fresh (yet old school in spirit) with no compromises on the overall performance as well as superb sound quality, then by all means listen to this CD. Its been one of my favorites since its initial release and continue to pummel me with each subsequent blasting.

Unfortunately, Summon broke up right after this album, which I remember being pissed off about since I didn't get to see them again, but they have reformed in 2010, yet without original member Sean "Xaphan" Peters, which makes it not exactly the same. Whether or not a new album is on the horizon is beyond me, but if not I'll surely be continuing to play this one for many years to come.