Technical Death Metal – Page 2 – Metal Eclipse Reviews

Allegaeon -The Ossuary Lens

Stargazer Scholar

Allegaeon is a daunting band. No, the musicians don’t wear corpsepaint, and no, they don’t employ spooky dissonant chords to ward off the casual listener. It’s just that their discography is so amazingly solid. One may prefer certain records to the others, but come on—none of those albums is anything less than highly enjoyable. So imagine the feelings that tormented me during the anticipation of The Ossuary Lens: Will this unlikely career-long run of form continue, or will the band finally allow itself a misstep? Well, no spoilers—you’ll have to read the whole thing.

Obscure – A Sonication

Yes! I’m guilty! I forgot about one of the hottest releases of the year because life is a more complicated rollercoaster than an Obscura opening riff. I’m a huge fan—I love almost everything in the band’s catalog, which is why it’s going to be hard for A Valediction to top previous releases. I know many were divided with Diluvium, but I loved it; it was as if At the Gates could perform Tech Death (I’m not the first one to say this, so chill!). However, can the apex predator in Tech Death defend its seat on Metal Olympus? Let’s shred our way in!

Carnosus – Wormtales

Carnosus has both the blessing and the curse of having dropped one of the best albums (and probably the best Tech Death album) of 2023: Visions of Infinihility. It took the underground by storm, and before we could even recover, the band is back with Wormtales. Many of us were nervous that it was too soon for Carnosus to hit us with more of its unique approach to Tech Death. But if there was one band capable of pulling off this feat, it was Carnosus. So, let’s dive in!

The Black Dahlia Murder – Servitude

The Black Dahlia Murder is a pinnacle of consistency. There hasn’t been an album in its long career that sucked. Even though the band has remained strict in style, TBDM has never fumbled the bag. However, it had to face its biggest challenge ever after the tragic loss of Trevor Strnad (everyone in the community struggled when the news hit, let’s face it), which is why I’m approaching this review differently. More than just jokes and expectations, I’m rooting for the band to show us that, despite how irreplaceable Trevor was, they can continue honoring his memory. Oh, and it’d be great if we love Servitude too! Let’s dive in.

Evilyn -Mondestrunken

I’ll give something to Evilyn—it has a cool band name. One that won’t make you suspect the ridiculous beatdown it can deliver. And what if I told you this is a “debut”? Could you believe a new band would compete in a year plagued with great Tech Death releases? Except Mondestrunken wasn’t written by amateurs. It features former members from Defeated Sanity, Psycroptic, and many others, which actually gives Evilyn the feeling of being a discreet superband. Cute, but Tech Death lives and dies by how exciting it is. Can this album stand out? We’ll see!

Monument of Misanthropy – Vile Postmortem Irrumatio

I’m usually honest with you, unless there’s some kind of profit behind lying to you. Otherwise, I always share my expectations. So, when I received the promo for Monument of Misanthropy‘s Vile Postmortem Irrumatio, I felt doubtful. Why? Because a Brutal Death Metal band singing about serial killers, psychological deviance, and grotesque violence is probably why the sub-genre was invented. However, I was puzzled by the fact that the band had cared to build a narrative in this album and that Transcending supported it, as they don’t support trash. So, let’s see if I was wrong!

Cosmic Jaguar – El Era del Jaguar

An album like this usually goes straight to the True Kvlt section. It came late, with no promo and little clout (plus the title is missing an accent mark in Él, that’s how pedantic we can be at MER). However, I was also puzzled by how strange all its elements were. We’re talking about a Tech Death mixed with Aztec Folk Metal band, from Ukraine, with lyrics in English and Spanish. It can’t get weirder than this. I had to listen to it to believe it. Could Cosmic Jaguar‘s El Era del Jaguar join our small group of year-end deep underground revelations?

Carnophage -Matter of a Darker Nature

Brutal and Technical Death Metal—those words should excite me, but in reality, we drown in promos claiming to be more savage than the last. So, when the “legendary” Carnophage dropped Matter of a Darker Nature, I thought, “Oh wow! That’s a cool cover art,” and that was that. However, I found the time to put my prejudices aside (as all of you should in life) and decided to give this dreadful creature a chance to smash me to pieces. Yay!

Wormed – Omegon

It’s been a long time since we heard anything from Wormed. So long, in fact, that I was beginning to assume its members had all died and their bodies were thrown in a ditch. You can imagine my joy when I found out that not only was Wormed alive, but it was also dropping a new album: Omegon. Here, we return to the origins of MER, space Metal! However, Wormed has always done its own relentless and unapologetic thing. Can this new album top a short but consistent discography? Keep reading, astronaut.

Unhallowed Deliverance – Of Sepctres and Strife

One of our underpaid interns told me that we had received an independent promo worth my full attention. Of course, I told them they were out of their minds and proceeded to cut them off without mercy because the Catto runs this site like the colonial powers used to run Africa—with a complete disregard for human decency. Either way, I gave Unhallowed Deliverance‘s Of Spectres and Strife a chance because the cover art looked legit (in Metal, always judge an album by its art). So, was it worth my time?