ALBUM REVIEW: Victory In Blood – Unanimated

True to their namesake, Swedish blackened death metallers UNANIMATED have been exactly that since 2009’s In The Light Of Darkness. While they’ve not released anything since then, its chronological and conceptual follow-up, Victory In Blood, has been under construction for the better part of half a decade. No matter a band’s longevity, whenever there’s a lengthy period of inactivity – 12 years, in this case – questions will always remain as to whether they can still deliver on what originally made them such a force to be reckoned with. UNANIMATED have got a lot to prove; this is their fourth album and death metal has undergone not just a resurgence but significant evolution since we last heard from them. So, can they still bring the fire? 

Right off the bat, the band make clear they’ve lost none of their intensity; the title track rampages out the gates with searing tremolo leads before Richard Cabeza’s rasping vocals enter with all the subtlety of a brick. It’s a chaotic maelstrom of breakneck riffing, pounding drums and mid-pitched screams. Second track Seven Mouths Of Madness very much operates in the same vein; frenetic pacing, drums that barrel along like a runaway minecart and a frosty fury underpinning it all. It’s with third track As The Night Takes Us that UNANIMATED deviate from this course, instead slowing down to delve into groovier territories with a stomping, chugging riff that wouldn’t be out of place on a SATYRICON album. The chorus affects a slightly deeper growl, sitting a little closer to spoken while still carrying plenty of venom and bite. 

The Devil Rides Out takes its name seriously, hellbent on playing fast and taking no prisoners. It’s a short, sharp shock of blackened death metal the likes of which the band have become synonymous with. Unfortunately it’s also here that they take their first misstep, as following it is With A Cold Embrace. This one’s an interlude that seeks to bring some more atmospheric elements, but the cleanly sung melodies sound off and it doesn’t fit the tone of menace pervading the rest of Victory In Blood. UNANIMATED redeem themselves with the one-two punch of Demon Pact (Mysterium Tremendum) and XIII, the latter of which leans the heaviest into their death metal influences in its opening riff before a devilish groove takes hold. 

The biggest problem with Victory In Blood is its length; at 47 minutes and 12 songs, despite the entertaining songwriting, the album would have benefited from being harsher on the edits and chopping a song or two; certainly With A Cold Embrace doesn’t bring much of anything to the table, nor does Chaos Ascends as another interlude. Alongside that, at a scant two minutes, Divine Hunger never gets any time to develop; instead it’s stuck repeating itself throughout and unfortunately gets repetitive even at such a short length. All that said, there’s still plenty to like about UNANIMATED’s long-awaited return; Victory In Blood packs plenty of punch and for the most part doesn’t pull them, its melodic blackened death metal sounding as grim and as consistent as before. That’s no mean feat for a band who have released two albums in 26 years; hopefully it won’t be another decade until their next. 

Rating: 7/10

Victory In Blood is set for release on December 3rd via Century Media Records.

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