Demiurg - Slakthus Gamleby (2010)

If you would take a hundred records from my collection, at random, it is very likely that you will find yourself with at least sixty (oldschool) death metal releases. The chance that you will not find a record between those witch features Rogga (Johansson) and/or Dan Swäno and/or Ed Warby is quite small, on the other hand. To say these gents that make up Demiurg nowadays - with the addition of Johan Berglund on bass - have a few impressive feats on their resumes is in fact an understatement. Once founded by Rogga, because he could not quite put all his ideas in Paganizer, Ribspreader and his vast horde of other bands and projects, Demiurg has matured to a full band with a sound of it's own. The arrival of Ed Warby on drums, who introduced his talent for clean vocals tot the world on his doomdeath project The 11th Hour's debut album 'Burden Of Grief', most certainly has something to with this.

'Slakthus Gamleby' kicks off in a way you might expect from the abovementioned roster with 'Life Is A Coma': a incredibly catchy oldschool Swedish death metal song with a lot of melody. After half a song, the unexpecting listener is suddenly surprised by a calm intermezzo including… indeed… female vocals. It's the voice of Marjan Welman of Dutch gothic band Autumn. The song picks up the old battering midtempo pace soon enough, but when you expect straightforward death metal, let me tell you, you are definitely surprised. And you know what? It's a nice surprise. While 'Death Grasp Oblivion' is another example of how oldschool death metal should sound - midtempo bits interlaced with uptempo onbeat parts - the song is complemented with some keyboard arrangements. It is obvious we are not dealing with old wine in new bottles here. Ed Warby's clean vocals at the beginning of 'Travellers Of The Vortex' put me on the wrong track for a moment and a Psychotic Waltz feeling comes over me, right before Demiurg waltz on again, psychotic or not.

Well, it would take too long to describe all songs on the record, but let it be clear that I am really impressed by 'Slakthus Gamleby'. Just about every song combines high-quality Swedish death metal with surprising elements, which make for a really strong album. I'm also a little bit surprised this release came out on the - with all due respect - rather small label Cyclone Empire, although they have shown to have an ear for good music in the past. If you are into old Swedish death metal and not too narrow-minded, I can wholeheartedly recommend this album. It's not too weird to think people who like the heavier Ayreon material will also appreciate this. Go forth and broaden thy horizon!

Tracklist:
1.Life Is A Coma
2.Death Grasp Oblivion
3.Travellers Of The Vortex
4.The Cold Hand Of Death
5.Cold Skin
6.From Laughter To Retching
7.Slakthus Gamleby
8.World Burial


Line-up:
Rogga Johansson - All Rhythm Guitar tracks, Lead Vocals
Dan Swano - Lead Guitars & Keyboard
Johan Berglund - Bass
Ed Warby - Drums & Clean Male Vocals
Marjan Welman - Female Vocals



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Enjoy!