Review by Felix on May 6, 2025.

You are not familiar with Necrodeath so far? Poor boy, I fear you are a little late, because Arimortis is announced as their farewell album. But why? Already, the explosive opener 'Storyteller Of Lies' delivers a big portion of anger and hate. The song bursts out of the speakers in a fascinating and fresh manner. All musicians and in particular Flegias and guitarist Pier Gonella reach their top form in a matter of seconds. Right from the start, the Italians celebrate their well-known and highly appreciated form of malicious, occasionally melodic or creepy thrash metal once again masterfully. It gets quickly obvious: Arimortis is both, a final statement of the band, but also a typical Necrodeath release. No useless experiments, no artificially staged grand finale. Just more of the tried and tested formula(s) of a legend that never failed. (I have forgotten that they made an album called Draculea; please don’t remind me.)

While the aforementioned opener mirrors their brutal side, songs like the ominous title track show the band’s gloomy facet. I guess it is needless to say that they manage both approaches very cleverly. Even old men do not suddenly unlearn the things they have done best during the last 25 years and in their very early days in the eighties. In retrospect, it was perhaps even fortunate that Necrodeath had nothing to contribute to the nineties. Who knows how the terrible anti-thrash zeitgeist of that decade would have corrupted them. But one thing is for sure, since their comeback album “Mater of All Evil” in 2000, the quartet almost never left its path and the band’s highly appreciated trademarks show up in abundance for the final time here. Enjoy the vicious screams, the high-class drums and percussion work, the sharp riffs and the mostly compact compositions. All is presented with a devastating sound which combines high precision with ultimate pressure and sharp edges. Highlights like “New God” (spontaneous, brutal and menacing after the silent beginning) or “No More Regrets” (great riffs, hateful anger, but also melodic sections) grow naturally in this environment. Not to mention the title track. Its calm guitar introduction and a beastly voice in the background create an uncomfortable feeling. As soon as the song shows itself in all its glory, it becomes clear that Necrodeath can also instinctively land a hit at mid-tempo and the catchy chorus contributes to the fantastic overall impression as well. Who is surprised after all these years?

With “Metempsychosis II” and “Necrosadist” the Italians continue the tradition of returning to their two early works. Unlike part one, “Metempsychosis II” is no pure instrumental, although Flegias’ contribution remains marginal. Anyway, a great song with a lot of fury, variation and high velocity. But more or less each and every track leaves its footprints and even a somewhat weaker number like “Near-Death Experience” deserves a little applause. So yes, Necrodeath have given the thrash community many, many exciting songs, parts and moments. No matter the exact line-up, the band was always authentic and driven by a nearly unstoppable fury. (By the way, don’t forget to check the murderous non-album track “Headhunting”, if you haven’t done it yet. It is one of the most thrilling tracks of their complete band history.) I will miss the ruffian voice of Flegias, the percussion elements of one-and-only drummer Peso and in general the tight interplay of the four dudes. Either way, if “Arimortis” is really their testament, it’s doubtlessly a worthy ending. Nevertheless, I still hope that Italy’s most impressive formation ever will come back again and that the statement concerning their farewell album is not true. Maybe they are just “Storyteller of Lies”? I would like that for once.

Rating: 8.7 out of 10

Review by Chris Pratl on June 5, 2018.

As a general rule, the technical side of death metal tends to lull me more than excite me. I'm not big on bands like Nile as they simply don't do much in the way of entertaining me from a death metal point of view. I'm from the school that death metal should be this foggy, ethereal element hanging heavily over the listener's head like a dense, enigmatic cloud that burrows into the ears with all of the ease of a malfunctioning trip hammer on the slow speed. For my personal tastes, death metal today relies too heavily on making the guitars sound pinpoint perfect and triggered drums allowing for all of the grunt work. At best, it's disheartening; at worst, it's a musical disgrace that makes the genre feel ho hum.

All of this aside, there are rare exceptions to this personal rule of mine, and Alabama's Chaos Inception manages to combine both old and new elements into its sophomore release, The Abrogation. There is an air, a vibe if you will, surrounding this album that creates that aforementioned haze and is central to the death metal genre, instilling feelings of thick, abiding rage. I'm left with the obvious Hate Eternal and even Nile feelings in some of the riffs and arrangements, but there is nothing tame or rudimentary about Chaos Inception.

The first thing I notice is the presence of a bass! Yes, Virginia, there is a bass! Criminally undervalued in far too many a DM record, that familiar humming in my ears makes me even more prepared to take on the nearly 30-minutes before me. Just five minutes into the album and I'm completely entranced and properly violated in all the right areas of my brain. Vocally, you have your typical death metal growls but with a definitive flair for enunciation and a familiar subjugating presence, ala Peter of Vader's camp minus the 'barking' yell. Aside from intelligent time changes and this amazing 'sweeping' effect of some of the riffs, The Abrogation seems to find the very crevices of the brain and dig deep into each of them to assure longevity in the memory bank.

As for the overall production, it's thick, resonating, foreboding, encompassing, and any other adjective you think might fit well when an album just crushes you under its mighty weight and forces you into a cocoon of submission. Here we have a happy mixture of that dense production that makes Grave or Nihilist so revered and the faint crispness of modern technology that allows the fan and fellow musician to really enjoy the little nuances that either make or break a record from this beloved genre. There are so many different riffs and elements to these songs, which is also a rarity these days since most death metal releases tend to meld into one long track without much in the way of variation or style. A track like "Black Blood Vortex" with its violent vocals and tremendously evil riffing can still provide the same inner turmoil as "Ancient Ways Prevail," a much slower, albeit uglier track among these nine pieces of DM artistry. 

When I started seeing recommendations as to how good this CD is from the gallery on my social media page, I was even more excited to pop it in at the first chance I got. So far I'm on my third listen and it gets stronger with every passing digestion. Alabama's on the map, kids, and Chaos Inception will hopefully be putting out more of the same here in the very near future. Credulity and style are still very much alive in The Abrogation.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

(Originally written for www.metalpsalter.com)