Time for something earth-shatteringly evil; The Evil Amidst are a stunningly proficient band from Florida featuring respected members of the scene there and detailing a collaboration of near-fantastic proportions, therefore, while this is a debut release it has the feel of a far more mature band thanks to its members’ experience. Opening with a horror-inspired clatter of ‘Lords of the nine’ this is seriously malevolent metal that sits somewhere between the iron-clad riffs of Arch Enemy and the deathly technicality of Behemoth. Clearly putting their strongest foot forwards, the band open with a breathtaking blast of technically-minded metal that not only draws you into the album but which also highlights just how proficient these musicians are. It’s a grand opening to be sure, the only question is can the band maintain the momentum over the remaining nine tracks?
Having battered you into submission with their opening track, The Evil Amidst cement their foundation with a slow-building, noxious, blast of icy metal with ‘of ice and skin’ which makes sterling use of a quiet introduction to introduce a sense of dynamics into the proceedings before flaying the skin from your bones with a guitar riff that sounds as if it has been fashioned from a snow-covered mountain top. Pounding and deeply unpleasant, it sounds awesome thanks to a top-notch production job that is just the right side of raw without sounding as if it has been recorded in a kettle. ‘Evil amidst’ has less time for subtlety. Short, violent and utterly overwhelming it’s a brilliant highlight that sets the scene perfectly for the darkly atmospheric ‘decreator’ which has a darker tone and slower template despite the raging guitars which introduces greater texture and detail into this already impressive album.
‘Onward into fire’ is every bit as heavy as one might expect with the double-speed kick-drum assault propelling the whole thing forward like a death march straight into the jaws of hell itself. Helping to maintain the heavy sound of the band, the song is fast but not to the point of losing clarity or focus, the band opting for a sound more akin to the sheer weight of, say, Kataklysm or Bolt Thrower rather than attempt warp-speed riffing which almost always results in a loss of depth. Another key aspect to the success of this excellent CD is the fact that The Evil Amidst are no strangers to guitar solos which lend an element of melody and clarity to the bridge sections which the breakdowns favoured by the younger bands on the scene often overlook. In short the wealth of experience that each member has bought to the band has allowed them to make an astonishing work that is smarter, heavier and just plain better than much of what is on the market today. Witness the stunning ‘amid the ruin’ which is quite beautiful and exquisitely played, subtly evoking the atmosphere of a film soundtrack with layers of guitar adding depth and texture to the sound and then contrast it with the utterly brutal, barking torment of ‘pit fiend’ which could almost be the work of a completely different band. It is this dichotomy between beauty and ugliness that The Evil Amdist explore with such clarity and skill and the result is an astounding album that you’ll never get tired of replaying. ‘Flesh of thorns ’is another blistering track that trades speed for sheer, light-extinguishing heaviness – if black holes had a soundtrack this may well be it – while the vocals are growled and yet rendered intelligible in the main before a ripping solo tears the roof clean off, clawing through the mix with an expert clarity. The final track is ‘lord serpent rise’ which once again creates a darkly ambient atmosphere from which to work its evil magic and the track sees the CD out in a welter of snatched drum beats and storming riffs.
The Evil Amidst have easily created one of the finest metal albums of 2010 in ‘lords of the nine’. Everything from the production to the lyrics to the expert musicianship points to a group of uncompromising musicians who are the experts in their field and utterly committed to delivering a thoroughly stunning album. The clarity of the riffs, the power of the solos and the searing intelligence and passionate delivery of the lyrics all make for unmissable listening and it is a further testament to the skill of these musicians that no attempt is made (or, indeed, needs to be made) to trade on the already illustrious names of the musicians involved, rather this is a thrilling and well-conceived effort that stands proudly upon its own feet. All hail the ‘lords of nine’ – this may be the best death metal album of 2010 – check it out fast.
