{"id":71265,"date":"2018-06-01T00:00:53","date_gmt":"2018-06-01T00:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=71265"},"modified":"2018-07-29T19:44:14","modified_gmt":"2018-07-29T19:44:14","slug":"album-review-wombbath-the-great-desolation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/album-review-wombbath-the-great-desolation\/","title":{"rendered":"WOMBBATH – The Great Desolation (2018) | Album \/ EP Reviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

WOMBBATH
The Great Desolation<\/strong><\/span>
\n\"\"
\nSoulseller (2018)<\/span>
Rating: 8.5\/10<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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When these guys formed in 1990 as Seizure my bloodshot eyes were immediately drawn to them, but to say this Swedish bunch has been rather inactive is an understatement. Only two albums had emerged before this latest effort, to the point that we are basically dealing with two different bands.<\/p>\n

Wombbath\u2019s debut offering Internal Caustic Torments<\/em> was released in 1993, and a year later the combo took on a death \u2018n\u2019 roll style with the Lavatory<\/em> EP. However, 2015 marked a new era for original member H\u00e5kan Stuvemark (guitar) and company with the Downfall Rising<\/em> platter.<\/p>\n

Since then, Wombbath have been on the up, issuing a few split projects and now this nine-track offering; a killer slice of Swedish death metal that follows the familiar trends we\u2019ve become accustomed to since the early 90s.<\/p>\n

Extra vim and nastiness is brought from the off with the snarling attack of \u2018Embrace Death\u2019, a fine chunk of salivating metal that combines those familiar buzzsaw riffs with faster lashings of ear-splitting pace. Yes, I know I\u2019ve moaned about so many bands adopting that Swedish sound, or the fact that too many Swedish acts all sound alike but again, if it\u2019s done right, then I can forgive. Just check out those gargantuan doomy segments and then the sudden change back to ferocious intent, and you\u2019ll be drooling all over the floor. <\/p>\n

The title track features a dark melody initially, bolstered by those stabbing drum nods from Henrik \u00c5berg who really shines on this track. The flurry of guitar, bass and drums then veers into an abrasive and chilly black metal style before the return to that dense, slower gloominess.<\/p>\n

And that\u2019s where Wombbath is at, the album and sound summed up by those two monoliths which ache with quality before the sinister realms of \u2018Footsteps Of Armageddon\u2019 are awoken \u2013 my favourite cut on the record. It begins in such a gloomy and choking fashion; the smoggy riff, the clunking bass and that creepy narration. The way the track builds into an immense chugging beast is simply admirable; Wombbath create grisly atmospherics, and grandiose ghastliness permeates the already foul air as the vocal barks of Jonny Pettersson soar into the mist and the combo embarks on a relentless assault. <\/p>\n

Other joys also include \u2018The Weakest Flesh\u2019; this one also begins with a fusty odour, the guitars just sawing with a simmering intensity as the drums cascade like bones thrown from a cliff before that aural assault of blistering speed. Meanwhile, \u2018Cold Steel Salvation\u2019 just goes for the throat from the start; this one gallops with such a ferocity until the tone drops and we get a meaty grind, the vocals becoming a hideous layer of squawks and yaps. <\/p>\n

\u2018Hail The Obscene\u2019 changes the mood entirely, however; this one starts out like a lofty ballad of sorts, stark in its haunting beauty before the sudden black \/ death sprawl envelopes us in its frosty cloak. Again, Wombbath soaks us up in its clammy, guttural atmosphere before the fizzing jerk, and we\u2019re headlong down the tunnel while being pursued by some salivating entity of the night.<\/p>\n

The melodies throughout this opus just bring up an awful sense of dread and suffocating darkness as \u2018Born Of Filth\u2019 with its rich, clawing melody contrasts with the devastating blows of \u2018Harvester Of Sin\u2019, which returns to aggressive type as a sick vortex of gnashing vocals and guitar accelerations.<\/p>\n

The whole experience leaves you coated in a gloopy phlegm while your skin begins to flap and flail at the realisation you\u2019ve just been shredded alive. 2018 has burped up a lot of Swedish and Swedish-styled manifestations, but Wombbath\u2019s is head and shoulders above most.<\/p>\n

Neil Arnold<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

WOMBBATHThe Great Desolation Soulseller (2018)Rating: 8.5\/10 When these guys formed in 1990 as Seizure my bloodshot eyes were immediately drawn to them, but to say this Swedish bunch has been rather inactive is an understatement. Only two albums had emerged before this latest effort, to the point that we are basically dealing with two different […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,4080],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-71265","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-album-ep-reviews","category-wombbath"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71265","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71265"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71265\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":71269,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71265\/revisions\/71269"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71265"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71265"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71265"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}