ALBUM REVIEW: Gatecreeper - "Sonoran Deprivation"

By: Rick Ahmed

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 07/10/2016

Label: Relapse Records

When they use melodies they're more creepy than pretty. They seem to only be there to allow you to catch your breath before they sit on your chest and start punching you in the face again

“Sonoran Deprivation” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1. Craving Flesh
2. Sterilizing
3. Desperation
4. Rotting As One
5. Stronghold
6. Patriarchal Grip
7. Lost Forever
8. Flamethrower
9. Grotesque Operations

The Review:

"In defence of hm-2 death metal"  Frankly I find it a little dismissive to reduce this new wave of death metal to nothing more than a type of distortion pedal produced in the early 80's. Gatecreeperdoes have that buzzsaw tone, they also conjure the spirit of the 90's, but they add much more of a doom metal vibe to it. At the same time the composition of these songs reminds one of traditional hardcore, the fat is stripped; the goal is simple, brutality.

When they use melodies they're more creepy than pretty. They seem to only be there to allow you to catch your breath before they sit on your chest and start punching you in the face again. The vocals are harsh barked death grunts that sit perfectly in the mix so as to compliment the crunching chugs rather than overpower them.  Also, the cover art is a breathtaking oil painting of what appears to be some sort of intergalactic horizon which also wins them some points in the "cool shit I'd like to display on my record rack" category. 

Anybody into extreme music should be able to enjoy the simple brutality and groove this album offers, I'd also recommend it to fans of; Nails, Trap Them, Obituary, Entombed, Kataklysm, Harm's Way.

“Sonoran Deprivation” is available here

Band info: bandcamp|| facebook