This, the second full load of Polish brutality from Masachist arrived in late 2012. This quartet does not consist of any greenhorns, but features Thrufel (guitar; ex-Yattering, ex-Azarath), Pig (aka Sauron, vocals; ex-Decapitated), Daray (drums; Vesania, ex-Vader), Heinrich (bass; Vesania, ex-Decapitated) teamed up with lesser-heard Aro (guitar, keyboards).

The debut album 'Death March Fury' (2009) was a truly aggressive charge of death metal mixed with grindcore. It also enclosed some groovy moments. The album's biggest weakness was its songwriting, which missed catchiness. My experiences with Yattering are exactly the same. My guess is, that Thrufel handled some songwriting in Yattering, as well as on Masachist's debut album. On 'Scorned', he has written most of the music. So does that mean, that we again have some problem with catchiness?

Let's observe, then... Opener 'Drilling the Nerves' has headbangable, groovy rhythms. The use of minimalist synthesizer sounds add a lot of atmosphere to the song. The guitar work is about heavy-handed riffing, fast death metal stuff and some warped lead guitar playing. The song is like a mixture of Polish death metal and Soulfly and the likes (when being at their most metal), and generally has a fresh feel to it. An unexpected start for those who know the debut album, surely! Probably a big fail for some listeners, too... 'The Process of Elimination' is closer to old Masachist, but here the production shows its shortcomings. The guitars sound ballsless and muffled. There's the similar problem with the drums, although they only sound muffled. The bass is very rumbling, not unlike on Korn albums. In a whole, this sounds like a demo, to tell the truth, not like a thought-out death metal platter. 'Straight and Narrow Path' introduce the industrial elements: cold industrial sounds and the playing that is machine-like churning, plus open-stringed guitar work. All these elements are heard through the rest of the album, too. The last song, Morbid Angel-esque 'Inner Void' is a sludgy, slower trample, trying to set a huge atmosphere. However, this is where the music does not rise to shine: The atmosphere. Yes, there is some, but not in a truly radiant way.

This is death metal, but with some rather noticeable twists, as you've read. Death metal riffing heard on the album can be traced back to late 1980s and early 1990s. At times there is a feeling of archaic evil, or pure contention. The production bites off the deadliest claws of guitars, sadly. Open-stringed guitar work takes a listener to USA, where this stuff can be heard on many core bands (from grind to math), or to the realms of black metal. For example 'Manifesto (100%D.M.K.M.)' packs some hefty Enslaved vibes. It all depends about the occasion, not about a listener's mind. The guitarists do not content just to riffing and lead guitar playing, but these are loads of guitar noises and details. The rhythm section is as varied as the music. Numerous different beats and basslines are abound, giving the music more faces than on any musically straighter album. Rather low and barbaric in style, the vocals are able growling.

The band clearly aimed for a characteristic style(s). And they also managed in that. This might be right down someone's alley, but is for very selective taste. The song material on 'Scorned' isn't very catchy, and still this thing is a big problem on the songwriting department. If the band could compose music, that threw more hooks towards a listener, then who knows how far Masachist could go.

Rating: 6+ (out of 10) ratings explained

Reviewed by Lane
04/23/2013 19:01