ALBUM REVIEW: Grand Malevolence – Depravity

After their debut Evil Upheaval did everything it promised (and more), Aussie death metallers DEPRAVITY set expectations sky-high for its followup. Taking two years to craft, Grand Malevolence more than lives up to expectations. There’s no ambient introduction or orchestral passage; instead opener Indulging Psychotic Thoughts goes off like a hand grenade, all frenetic blastbeats and throat-ripping roars. Changing pace on a dime, the band drops the hammer for a slow section around the minute mark before taking off at breakneck speeds once more.

The following title track is cut from the same cloth, though with some vicious syncopation and higher screeches shortly after the minute mark. There’s some melodic flourishes in the guitar work too, changing things up from the consistently solid riffing. Cantankerous Butcher drops in a massive chorus, mixing high and guttural roars with an expansive soundscape replete with harmonics and squealing guitars. It makes the inevitable descent back into the bludgeoning mire hit all the more effectively. 

With a name like DEPRAVITY, you might be expecting brutal death metal or slam and you wouldn’t be far off the mark, at least in part. Their sound is borne of technical death metal but without the clinical edge that so much modern tech death has. Instead, it’s ground up with elements of the kind of skull-cracking brutal death metal that would make CANNIBAL CORPSE proud and even some progressive flourishes.

Every song here is at least good – with some moments bordering on depraved euphoria, such as Trophies of Inhumanity’s guitar squeal that heralds a swirling maelstrom of tremolo guitars, double bass and syncopated vocals. Closer Ghosts of the Void is not just one of the best tracks on here, but also frankly one of the best they’ve ever written. It’s ambient, menacing opening few seconds give way to a towering melodic riff that drops into a gigantic, neck-snapping groove. The sheer heft of it is enough to crack continents before the off-kilter break shifts things into an even higher gear. 

If there’s criticism to be had, it’s that despite the musical pedigree on display and how tightly-executed and fun songs can be, it’s that the album feels longer than it is. At eleven tracks and 49 minutes it’s not the shortest album you’ll hear this year – though length isn’t always bad. With their brutal tech death approach, less is often more and here, there’s a little too much. The fatigue that sets in is likely the production. Frankly, it’s too loud with almost no dynamic range. Death metal like this isn’t the most dynamic in the first instance and the loud mastering job robs DEPRAVITY of the dynamics they do employ. This stops the truly huge moments hitting as hard as they should. It’s a real shame, dragging down what is otherwise a band stepping up to the plate in a big way after an already standout debut. 

Rating: 7/10

Grand Malevolence is out now via Transcending Obscurity Records.

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