Fleshgod Apocalypse – Labyrinth (2013)

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Bigger, better, quicker, and more grandiose seems to be the objective of Fleshgod Apocalypse and their monumental release “Labyrinth”. Having blown people away with the combination of dramatic orchestrations and extreme technical abilities in “Agony”, the band is ready to deliver an even more impressive and monumental release with this album.

The album kicks off with dramatic operatic vocal arrangements and over the top orchestrations on “Kingborn”. This single opening makes the last Dimmu Borgir album sound like a bunch of kids playing with Protools. In this track the band also delivers their signature Technical Death Metal with hyper fast riffs and killer drumming. “Minotaur (The Wrath of Poseidon)” eases into the picture with a more standard approach featuring killer growls mixed into the rich sound of the band. Don’t be fooled since there are also plenty of memorable melodic passages mixed in between all the brutal sections and lush arrangements.

Perfectly flowing as a complete symphony, “Elegy”, “Towards The Sun”, and “Warpledge” keep things rolling with tons of memorable melodic passages and extremely well crafted classical/operatic arrangements. We are amazed on how well the album is engineered for everything to sound crystal clear and allow both the brutal sections and the lush orchestral arrangements to breathe and deliver just the perfect impact to our ears.

“Epilogue” is one of our favorite tracks thanks to the string instruments used and the overall Gothic/Symphonic Metal vibe it has. This track is quite dark and very enjoyable in our opinion, without losing the Felshgod Apocalypse vibe. If you are looking for that Dimmu Borgir-esque epic vibe, “Under Black Sails” is one hell of a track you will not want to miss. The album mellows out with the album title track, a very enjoyable instrumental piece with a very solemn piano in the middle of it.

As a whole, “Labyrinth” is one massive release that pushes the boundaries of brutality mixed with lush orchestrations. The band has greatly improved their Technical DM skills and they are not afraid of merging them with even more lush and dramatic orchestrations. If you are looking for something that combines the musical skills of Black Dahlia Murder, Obscura, Spawn of Possession and the symphonic proficiency of bands like Therion, Epica, etc., you should definitely check this guys out since they are more than amazing.

Band: Fleshgod Apocalypse Album: Labyrinth

Label: Nuclear Blast Records

Release: August 16th, 2013

Oficial Site myspace

Genre: Symphonic / Technical Death Metal

Country: Italy

Rating: 89/100
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