Review CARNIFEX ‘Graveside Confession’

OK, I can’t really say that I was the biggest Carnifex fan until now. It was always too much of everything the band from California included in their music. Blackened death-core, that’s what you got from the band and that is still what the guys deliver on their new album ‘Graveside Confessions’. My first thought when receiving the album was: another hour of brutal death-core that challenges ears and mind. And yes, the running time is 63 minutes which means that there is a lot to digest and/or explore on this album.

After having listened to ‘Graveside Confessions’ a few times, I have to say that I might need to redefine my thoughts about the band because what I got to hear was surprisingly good. What makes the album to an interesting release also for fans outside the world of extreme metal is the addition of density-amplifying keyboards. What might be seen as a controversial element adds to the sound of Carnifex. I felt reminded of what band like Cradle Of Filth and Dimmu Borgir did when adding a more atmospheric element to their black metal sound. Here it a death-core band that takes the same route and it works really well.

The middle part of the thundering ‘Countless of Perpetual Torment’ is a good representative for a blend of brutal riffs and atmospheric keyboard-sounds that amplify the thrill of this song. That doesn’t mean that fans of the earlier Carnifex don’t get what they are looking for. There are tunes like the blistering ‘Collaborating Like Killers’ and ‘Slit Wrist Savior’ that will be much appreciated by fans of the band.

‘Graveyard Confessions’ is irritating, distracting, brutal, hectic and must be seen in its totality. Carnifex is an established band that took the freedom to evolve and develop without denying the roots, manifested in 15 massive metal track. ‘Graveyard Confessions’, an album between genius and insanity.