A band with well over 10 releases behind 'em, and "hello!" from me... This, the latest one titled 'Det djävlanästet', is the sophomore full-length album in the band's discography which mainly consists of demo recordings. 17 fucking minutes make a full-length album?! Well, whatever, just make sure you don't pay a handful of coinage for this.

It's not like Aggressive Mutilator strive for hit list ranks with this one. This Swedish duo sounds like the last two decades never happened. No, make that the last three decades! AM stick to rather simplistic formulas here, taken straight from the first wave of black metal. They mix it with punk, and of course it is not that Epitaph style punk here.

Blast beats alternate with D-beats, cold tremolo picking take turns with angry riffs. Hell, at times it reminds me of Satyricon's concoction of these two styles, even though AM are way more manky. AM can bind some evil riffage and lead guitar work in, too, probably best presented on the song 'Hypocrite Church'. There are several moments of archaic style Swedish death metal stuff mixed in, too.

The songs can be very, if not overtly simplistic (that's more Finnish band Black Rock's style, whose latest one was also released by Defense Records), but some offer quite a bit changes. Well, what can one do in 2½ minutes anyway? The album as a whole is more like a chameleon. Two "harmonium" interludes make it even more so. Yeah, a 17-minute long full-lengther, and these interludes last for over 2 minutes. Is this the shortest full-length album ever created? Still, it has more variety than some Cannibal Corpse platters...

Plus for that intense, bubbling bass guitar. The production job is primal, but suits well with the whole. I just wished it was a tad uglier. Artwork is made in old demo cassette and zines style, which emphasises the band's craving for ancient times of extreme metal. The lyrics are printed (4 songs in English, 3 in Swedish), and at least English texts are juvenile. Oh, and the vocals... Ugly demonic shrieking and barking voice is often effective, but that "victim fifty-nine" line dropped me off my chair, laughing. Talk about juvenile attempt...

Aggressive Mutilator do some things well, but also fuck up others. There certainly is some entertainment, and comedic, value here, but I don't feel like I was assaulted by Legion. And, a 17-minute full length album?!?! Be careful for what you pay.

Rating: 4½ (out of 10) ratings explained

Reviewed by Lane
12/06/2019 19:00