Review CADAVER ‘The Age of the Offended’

Cadaver is a band that went through different phases, including splits and reunions. The latest return took place in 2020 when Anders Odden and Dirk Verbeuren released the ‘D.G.A.F.’ EP. Three songs have been the appetizer for a death metal dish called ‘Edder & Bile’ which followed a few months later.

The current times are the third era of Cadaver, a band that started back in 1988 with two full-length releases. Another couple of studio albums have seen the light of day in early 2000^th before the mentioned releases heralded phase three of a band that influenced Norwegian metal.

With ‘The Age of the Offended’ the next studio album stands in line to be shipped to the record stores and it is the anticipated brutal death metal release. The new Cadaver album reflects current times in a great fashion. It is an angry and furious album and the primitive foundation of Cadaver’s metal contribute to the overall vibe.

At the same time ‘The Age of the Offended’ offers a lot of versatility and it might take a while to explore the core of this release. Not being very convinced after the first listen, it took me a while to enjoy the longplayer while spinning it a few more times.

In a way, the music on this release is as scattered as the artwork. There is a lot to explore and at the same time it is a morbid simplicity that strings together all the pieces.

‘Crawl of the Cadaver’ is a song I can recommend since it features a lot Cadaver’s trademarks. A rabidly pace, grooving moment, Verbeuren’s excellent drumming and the rogue vocals by Odden, all is present here and fascinates right away.

Another song that you should check out is the title track. Paced moderately the song has a sinister grin toward society embedded. Was it the provoking factor of black- and death metal in the 90s that created a shocking moments it is the current time, with its over-sensitivity that avoids saying what thinking to not offend anybody. Such a development is water to the mills for a band like Cadaver.

‘The Shrink’ with its superbly crafted chorus gives you the shivers too before a few songs further down the tracklist the slower paced ‘The Drowning Man’ unfold a sinister vibe. ‘Deadly Metal’ is what the title indicates, a lightning metal anthem with crushing power.

‘The Age of the Offended’ is a raging and versatile death metal album. Under difficult circumstances of a pandemic the duo found ways to write and record songs that are hellish anthems of metal. This album provides a lot and with each listen new details come to surface, which is, in a genre that has brought already a lot to the plate, a remarkable achievement.