Review by TheOneNeverSeen on September 21, 2023.

Necrotted have gone a long way from the traditionally deathcore Kingdom of Hades to a curious blend of melodic death metal and core (Anchors Apart), a cleaner and more deathcore sound (Worldwide Warfare, Die for Something Worthwhile) and, eventually, to their new release Imperium. The experiments the band has conducted over the past decade resulted in multiple interesting tracks such as the furious 'This Blustery Ocean', the... happy? 'United We Stand' and the melodic 'Six Feet Deep, No Party Too Steep'. As in most of their releases, the band uses elements of different genres, conjuring an epic and engrossing sound and melodies, at the same time not mimicking Lorna Shore or Mental Cruelty, but instead creating a peculiar remarkable sound that any death metal/deathcore fan should definitely get acquainted with.

Imperium seems to be continuing the trend of Operation: Mental Castration, for it also makes use of black metal elements previously not employed by the band. Also, the melodic elements seem to be even more significant here than on the band's previous effort with songs 'Artificial Truth' and 'Ignorance is Fear' creating Lorna Shore-like spirit pretty well. While not differing much from Operation: Mental Castration sound-wise (although I would say it sounds cleaner than its predecessor), Imperium is much better in terms of its melodies, with most songs standing out in some way. The somber intro and outro, the skillfully employed bass and the overall powerful flow of 'Reich der Gier', the solo of the track with a badass title 'Sow Sorrow for Victory', the apocalyptic feeling of 'Round X: Freedom V Security', an excellent The Black Dahlia Murder-like riff of 'Imperator' and the black metal feel of 'Order Beyond All Bounds' will linger with the listener for long. While the tracklist of the album is not perfect and it does have songs that are merely OK such as 'A Veiled Awakening' or 'My Reign Come, My Will Be One', the record is nonetheless consistent, doesn't feel too long or too short and manages to deliver quite a few moving melodies.

The lyrics of the album are very good. I enjoyed the combination of German and English lyrics as well as a step away from the fun, but not as interesting "CAPITALISM BAD *incoherent noises*". The best lines in my opinion are "Es lebt in dir, es lebt in mir/Willkommen im Reich der Gier/Rücksichtslose Unvernunft" ("It lives in you, it lives in me/Welcome to the kingdom of greed/"Reckless insanity") and "Lasst die Jahre und Jahrzehnte vergehen/Nichts überdauert mein Imperium/Keine Überreste überleben" ("Let the years and decades pass/Nothing will outlast my empire/No remnants survive").

To follow the lyrics of 'Imperator' and wrap the burning remnants up, Imperium is a very solid work that marks a new era in Necrotted's discography as well as offers an interesting blend of death metal, black metal and deathcore. While the riffs are mostly derived from the latter, due to the fact the listener is never overdosed with excessive and sickening (in a bad way) breakdowns, annoying harmonies and tormented with bad vocals, the album is likely to be enjoyable even for those not into the genre. So, if you have not managed to get into the deathcore's bigger acts or you're just looking for unusual modern metal, this Necrotted album is definitely for you.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10