Sophicide, Perdition of the Sublime

I’ve stated in past reviews that I’m not the biggest technical death metal fan — to keep it short, too much showing off and too little, you know, actual songs. Well, that’s not the case with Perdition of the Sublime, the debut full-length eruption of tech death from Germany’s Sophicide. Not only do these guys actually play the shit out of their instruments, but there are actual songs here, songs you can sink your teeth into and actually sit back and enjoy without having your neanderthal-sized cerebral cortex twisted relentlessly out of shape by too much noodly-doodly guitars.

Originally formed in 2009 as a one-man project and still fronted by that one man, Adamn Laszlo (who is still just 22 at the time of this review), the band now features a second guitarist, though the drums are still programmed — albeit, set up nicely to make them almost feel believably real. The music held within the eleven tracks of Perdition of the Sublime are packed full of blasting rhythms, technical riffage, sick leads, barked growls and enough anti-religious vitriol to make the pope piss himself. Just take a look at the opening track, “The Art of Atrocity,” as a prime example of what each song has in store for you. It rips right out of the gate with spastic drum programming, staggered riffing, and guttural growls.

The song writing throughout this album is not what one would expect on a debut. There is a maturation to the structure of each song that gives the feeling of an epic adventure. Throw in some periodic sound bytes, acoustic guitar, background keyboards and you’ve got yourself something teetering on greatness. The intensity with which the album presents itself is evident within the fullness of the title track as well as the mid-tempo build up of songs like “Of Lust and Vengeance.” Just want some flat-out violence? Look no further than the explosive “Execration,” or the searingly memorable “Freedom of Mind,” or, better yet, feast your feeble sights on the swirling “Dawn of a New Age.” Holy bowel-spasm-inducing technical mayhem, Batman.

If there’s one thing missing from the album it would be a little more forward placing bass (it shows up sparingly on a couple of fills). I’m not sure if I just don’t hear it or if the production is the cause (this album is LOUD), but I want some more rumble in the mix. The album is also really clean which suits the style well enough, but I’d love to hear a little grit in the mix. Those nitpicks aside, I thoroughly enjoyed the blasphemous attack of Perdition of the Sublime. It’s certainly impressive considering the age of mastermind Laszlo and sets the guy up for high expectations going forward.