Album Review: Decayed Existence – The Beginning Of Sorrows (Rottweiler Records)

For over thirty years Decayed Existence have been on a crusade of crushing death metal, and across a plethora of demos, compilations, EPs and full-length albums, they have brought brutality to the masses. Their mission is far from over though and on October 11th, 2024, their latest effort ‘The Beginning of Sorrows’ is unleashed via Rottweiler Records.

Featuring five brand-new tracks, and three live recordings, The Beginning of Sorrows isn’t the most substantial of albums, but it still offers plenty to get excited over. Plenty that comes from a belligerent and heavy place, with Decayed Existence showing just how everlasting a straight-forward style of death metal is.

The bar for savage old-school death metal is set extremely high with the pairing of Escape the Dead and Baptized. Decayed Existence clearly wanted to start this album off in heated fashion, and they delve deeply into their extensive bags of tricks to showcase a macerating style of heaviness. The riffs are intense, the soloing is wild, the drums have such force, and the vocals are of the most guttural kind of death metal sounds. Putting it f**king bluntly, Decayed Existence sound brilliant here.

A point further proved by the following Beheading the Colossus, where Decayed Existence find a way to make a cacophony of guitars and drums sound downright catchy. One of the ‘hookiest’ death metal tracks you’ll hear all year.

Finally, making up the new portion of the album, it’s Mind Wars and the title track. Two more generous death metal offerings that walk the line between ‘old-school’ and ‘dated’ perfectly. This kind of riotous intensity is so familiar, but it doesn’t sound out of place in the modern world of metal. It’s the everlasting appeal of death metal, where all that matters is delivering something so enjoyable.

Which is what this album offers, especially if you want to experience their live sound without being subjected to the eye-watering and ear-bleeding experience in the flesh. The latter part of the album features three beastly live tracks. Conqueror of Flesh, Where Death Dies, and Detonation. Chances are, if you’ve never experienced Decayed Existence live, these three tracks will leave you feeling like it must be equally the most exhilarating and most terrifying of experiences.

It’s an album that leaves you wanting more, but it’s still a filling listen thanks to the thick meatiness of the new tracks.

Decayed Existence – The Beginning of Sorrows Track Listing:

1. Escape the Dead
2. Baptized
3. Beheading The Colossus
4. Mind Wars
5. Beginning of Sorrows
6. Conqueror of Flesh (Live)
7. Where Death Dies (Live)
8. Detonation (Live)

Links

Bandcamp | Facebook | Rottweiler Records