If you haven’t checked out the first and second groups of death metal bands that got me into the genre, then go ahead and read up! Again, these bands are pretty notable and don’t need to leave links to tunes as they’re very established.
These guys have been on my radar for a decent amount of time now since 2013’s “Kingdom Of Conspiracy”. Album after album, these legends have put out quality albums without getting enough respect from the death metal scene. Yes, I believe they get some credit on the scene but not enough. Immolation has consistently produced the most underrated death metal albums of staggering quality, starting with the great vocals of Ross Dolan. His constant set of pipes has been the trademark of this underdog of a band since I was one year old in 1988. I wish I heard of these monsters sooner than later, but better late than never especially in this case. Their slow, nasty rhythms have been a trademark since I discovered this great band. They’re on my live show bucket list, I’ll get around there one of these days…..their latest release “Atonement” from 2017 is their best album in a little while. It’s really polished, and one of the better albums from the last few years.
I’m late to the party with another band (just like with Immolation) with the technical and groovy death metal kings Nile are another one in the same mold I ignored for a bit too long. And hot dang, did I ever regret this. Founder Karl Sanders (guitar & vocals) has as huge interest in Egyptian history, and combines that with his love of extreme metal. 2012’s landmark record “At The Gate Of Sethu” was my initial gateway into this great band. The record after that is when I really settled into the band and their sound “What Should Not Be Unearthed”. Nile’s consistency in the scene has been an impressive feat, considering some band’s styles die out after some time. You’d think after a few albums the scene would get sick of the same story every time out…..but in fact Karl and company have been putting out great album after album. After “Sethu”, I went backwards and discovered the band’s old albums with the obvious banger “Annihilation Of The Wicked”. Karl is not only a talented artist but an equally nice person as well (from what I see as a fan). He also stuck up for my boy Helmuth of Belphegor when they toured with Nile across Europe in a Russian airport when a bystander spat at Helmuth. The good guy that he is got in the way of the stranger and Helmuth before he could throw down. More typical “judge a book by its cover” crap and stereotyping against metalheads in general. Guitarist/Vocalist Dallas Toller-Wade (member since 1997 shortly after their first full length) left the band in 2017 and stayed with his then side project Narcotic Wasteland. These guys are wildly talented and still put out top notch death metal, considering they survived the 1990’s nu metal explosion and 2000’s metalcore scene. As well as Immolation, I’ve been dying to see these guys live as well. Ironically, I saw their bass player’s side project Olkoth live recently. They are also working on a new album and am sure that will crush.
Origin’s twisted, heavy, fast and brutal approach to death metal is a wild and entertaining style to say the least. Their music is still newer to me, as the first record I heard of theirs was 2014’s “Omniprescent”. Their wild drumming courtesy of John Longstreth immediately grabbed me when I got into the band. Sci-Fi tends to be a rising topic in death metal these days, but it feel like this band was born in outer space. The theme fits their music perfectly, and awesome album art to boot. Origin is a band that is embraced by the younger crowd, but not as much with the older death metal fans. I totally feel like these guys deserve a bigger spot by EVERYONE in the death metal community. They’ve put out great album after album without being considered one of the genre’s leaders (outside of obvious greats like Death, Suffocation, Obituary, Morbid Angel and even Atheist or Possessed who helped create and solidify the genre).
I hope everyone enjoyed reading more of the bands that got me into death metal. Next article I will have some music posted because they may not be as well known as the bands from the first 3 articles. Maybe it’s a chance to discover a band you don’t know of!
Categories: Dave's Metal Journey