ALBUM REVIEW: Apocalypse – Rotten Sound
When you think of metal from Finland, you tend to think of bands such as NIGHTWISH, CHILDREN OF BODOM and INSOMNIUM – music with big productions, symphonic elements, and plenty of melody. ROTTEN SOUND are out to change all of that with their particularly grisly and DIY brand of scathing grindcore music. Over the course of the past three decades vocalist Keijo Niinimaa and guitarist Mika Aalto have created violent slabs of chaotic music with poignant lyrics and enough memorable mosh moments to fill out multiple setlists. However, it has been seven long years since the band graced us with a new full-length album and now in 2023 the boys are back with long-time drummer extraordinaire Sami Latva and newest recruit Matti Raappana appearing hyper-focused and ready to unleash upon the unsuspecting world one of the most exciting releases of the year in Apocalypse.
You get about a nanosecond of playtime before Pacify uppercuts you with an onslaught of skin cleaving riffs and savage vocals. This is grindcore right out of the top drawer, offering no quarter and leaving you with the perfect level of nervousness and morbid curiosity for what is to come next. The guitar riff from Equality sounds like it comes straight from a New York hardcore basement show in the 90s and is paired wonderfully with intricate metal drumming. The only issue with this track (as is often the case with grind) is that it doesn’t go on long enough. This is a riff that needs to be savoured, so the repeat track option may have to be utilised here a few times to give it the attention it so rightfully deserves.
Who would have thought that Apocalypse could be an onomatopoeic word? Well clearly, the lads in ROTTEN SOUND, as the appropriately-titled eponymous track sees the band tap into a level of heaviness here that most groups can only dream of, making you feel like you are genuinely listening to the end of days. Renewables pummels you into the ground with drumming that resembles heavy artillery and one of the most emotive vocal performances from Niinimaa on the entire release. At this point the threshold for what many people can endure would have been well an truly smashed into oblivion and the crazy fact about that is this isn’t even the half way point of the album. There are still FOURTEEN songs in the chamber – locked, loaded and ready to blow a hole through your ear drums. And that is exactly what they do, with tracks such as Digital Bliss and True And False beating you sonically over the head with such calculated strikes of power that you almost forget that these two songs clock in at just over a minute and a half combined.
In the second half of the album the band show no signs of letting up in terms of ferocity or power. The blast beats from Latva and trade-off vocals between Niinimaa and Raappana on Nothingness makes for one of the highlights of the whole album (and there are plenty), whilst the two-step section of Fight Back proves that the band wear their old school hardcore influences on their sleeves. Ownership is a track that proves that they are not just a one trick pony, with the middle section boasting the kind of groove-based riff that would make the likes of SEPULTURA pay close attention, before once again smashing your ear canal to pieces with another volley of blast beats just to ensure you don’t get a moment to relax.
The longest track on the album comes in the form of Empowered. Clocking in at one minutes and 57 minutes, it serves as a perfect example of the amount of musical ground a talented act can cover in a short amount of time. There are hardcore sections, there are full-on grind sections and they all seem to be tied together in a way that is so seamless that you cannot help but sit back and admire the level of songwriting that has gone into creating this maelstrom of extremity.
If you thought that the closing track was going to be anything but a sonic assault then you couldn’t be any more wrong. With Inflation the band go out exactly as they came in. The riffs from Aalto sound like a buzzsaw as they cut through the machine gun drumming and rumbling bass, creating the perfect backdrop for the commanding vocals of Niinimaa as he barks every syllable as if it was his last. If the grindcore crown belonged to WORMROT last year for their sublime Hiss then it may well be handed over to ROTTEN SOUND for 2023, because Apocalypse is about as good as you are likely to hear out of this dark little corner of our wonderful metal world this year.
Rating: 9/10
Apocalypse is out now via Season Of Mist.
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