January 21, 2010 | , | 3

Impious, Death Domination

Impious: Death Domination

In the mood for some temporary hearing loss? Take Impious‘s latest offering from Metal Blade Records, Death Domination, and turn that bitch all the way up. For as ferocious as the band’s delivery of thrashing death metal is, that’s all there really is to this album.

There are a few shining moments here and there, but for the most part the band slams the accelerator through the floor and rarely ever lets up. The guitars are quite active with plenty of standard, high speed death riffing with a few decent leads thrown in for good measure. The rhythm section is unrelenting with rapid fire drumming and nicely timed blasts. Vocally, the mid-range to deep growls are pretty decent, complimenting the no-frills death action from the rest of the guys.

All in all, Death Domination isn’t a horrible album — it’s just sort of there. At least it’s delivered with plenty of aggression and vehemence.

Abomination Glorified
And away we go. After a brief build up with some decent riffs, Impious get down to business with blasting drums and deep growls. There’s a little melody thrown into the guitars, but for the most part this is straight forward, bruising death metal. There’s a bit of a slow down with the chorus which is promptly followed by a great lead around 1:40.

The Demand
“The Demand” keeps the accelerator flattened to the floor as it erupts out f the gate with driving riffs and pile driving drums. There’s a nice flow to the vocals throughout this song that keeps them from getting flat. The riffing is fairly similar to the first song for the most part. The deep guttural growls at 1:45 are a nice touch, especially when layered with the backing growls. It’s nice to hear a little versatility in the growling. There’s another decent lead at 2:15 that hovers above some animalistic drum work.

I Am The King
There’s a definite Swedish death metal feel applied to the rapidly moving riffs and drums throughout “I Am The King.” Man, this is a furious song delivered at full throttle. I’ve got to give it to these dudes — they know how to hurl everything they’ve got at your skull. Bullseye.

And The Empire Shall Fall
A quieter, more dramatic start breaks up the onslaught a good deal as this next song builds slowly over the first 30 seconds or so to rolling drums, distant chants and big guitars. Once everything comes to a head, hang on as we’re thrown directly into hyper drive with blasting drums and wicked guitars by the time the vocals arrive. This is a pretty violently delivered track that ebbs and flows with emotion and atmosphere — a nice change of pace from the first three songs.

Dead Awakening
I’m digging the more original start to “Dead Awakening” as the guys settle into a mid-tempo pace and a catchy cadence to the vocals. There’s a good deal more going on within this song than the previous tracks in terms of technical structure. The shifting tempos will definitely keep you on your toes. This is a highlight of the album for sure.

Hate Killing Project
A pretty frenzied start with pile driving drums and catchy guitars gets this next song off to a nice clip as the guys settle into a punishing groove. This one rarely lets up off the accelerator in its straightforward attack. It’s a pretty single minded track, but well executed.

Rostov Ripper
The Rostov Ripper was a Ukranian serial killer who had 52 documented deaths to his name prior to his execution in 1991. The song chronicling the murder’s story starts off beefy with sick riffs and thundering drums. Layered vocals give the song a nice tinge of evil and depth while the drums continue to bludgeon and blast. This was a pretty decent track with plenty of aggression and fury.

Legions
“Legions” is a barbaric, chugging monstrosity. After the first few riffs and driving drums, Impious rest back in the easy chair of mosh with beefy riffs and manic drum work. The song features some of the more guttural vocals as well with plenty of range hitting higher end screams in the process. The chorus incorporates a nicely timed slow down in the pace to really emphasize the growls.

As Death Lives In Me
A nasty thrash riff and animalistic drumming gets this next track off to a raucous beginning as the guys shift into a frantic attack on the senses. This is the best song in the second half of the album. There are plenty of tempo shifts to keep you entertained through the song — complete with a fairly memorable and growl along chorus.

Irreligious State Of War
The final song on the album keeps in the same formula as a majority of the album with a thrashing, pile driving start before settling into a groove — the whole time never really letting up on the accelerator. As a whole, Death Domination is one of those albums you can just sort of put on and let it fade into the background of whatever it is you’re doing. It’s bludgeoning, aggressive, but again, nothing we really haven’t heard before.

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Additional Notes:
N/A