By The Patient – Premonitions (2012)

Delivering their sophomore release through Deathbound Records, today we have Denmark’s By The Patient and their brutal album “Premonitions”. With a very unique mixture of traditional European Death Metal and some melodic elements, this band does a great job in keeping things interesting and the listener engaged until the last second of this release. Through nine songs we have a journey of incisive guitar work, blasting drumming and very aggressive vocals, exactly what the doctor ordered for a Tuesday night of drinking.

Opening with the crushing “A Distorted Mirror Image”, the band’s traditional DM chops jump off immediately, but they gracefully progress to more melodic and catchy riffs. Very interesting in our opinion since they seem to switch the focus of the music and manage to create an engaging song structure, the same can be said for “Hours of Mist”. The almost Black Metal-esque riffs of “Veil of Depression” really give the track an even more aggressive edge, but it is ultimately the massive drumming that really stands out as the most aggressive element of the band. The particularly like the melodic passages of this very unique song.

“Enes” really brings back memories of Swedish Death Metal bands from the early 2000’s with its very intricate guitar work and killer solo. We really thought this band was from Finland the first time we listened to this CD since their incorporation of melodic elements into such aggressive tracks sounds like something only a Finish band can pull-off and not sounds week. Our favorite song in this release is the album title track thanks to the excellent twin-guitar work and the overall sense of brutality the band carries with their very accessible sound.

Coming in close second place for our favorite song is the excellent “Oceans of Emptiness”, where the band again delivers a guitar riffing clinic and creates a very unique and melodic atmosphere. The closer “Forests” really delivers a very sick ending for this release, but we will let you figure this one out on your own. Overall, By The Patient is one hell of a band and their very unique style of aggressive music is quite enjoyable and will keep you engaged for the whole album, so it is definitely worth your money.

Release: September 25th, 2012

Genre: Death Metal

Country: Denmark