Another death metal band from Poland... But this time around it's something special, because Masachist was formed by guitar player Mariusz "Trufel" Domaradzki (also in Yattering and Azarath) and drummer Dariusz "Daray" Brzozowski (also in Vesania and known from his work with Vader among other bigger names). The vocalist spot was given to ex-Decapitated man Wojciech "Sauron / Pig" Wasowicz, and Arkadiusz "Aro" Jablonski (also in Shadows Land and Torquemada) was added as a second guitarist and Filip "Heinrich" Halucha (also in Vesania and Rootwater) as bass player. So they aren't novices...

And it can be heard. Everything is performed with skill, but it's more about intensity than technicality. Just look at the song lengths and what do they tell you? Yes, the music is mostly of very high velocity. A lot of blastbeat and otherwise top speed tempos insanely forged by Daray. Two guitarists try their best to utilize their quick fingers, so there is a lot of cool lightspeed riffs to be heard. The bass is a bit under other instruments, but what is heard of it it's fast. Oh, what a surprise... Yes, the music is very fast for a big part, but these guys are so seasoned and they know, that at times it's a must to slow the pace to intrigue listeners. Musicwise, this is not groundbreaking at all. Masachist sound somewhat like if Vader, Krisiun and Immolation jammed together with Napalm Death. That's to say, that Masachist's compositions are never very straight, but they more like summon a vortex of death metal (yes, it's still death metal despite its grindcore influences) that go from a start to end through a few points. At any point, this album is no background music, but it needs constant attention from a listener.

The production of the album is quite raw yet balanced. Suits well with their brutal music. Especially the guitars sound ripping. At the fastest, the drumming sounds almost mechanic, so fast it is.

Masachist has grown from a project to a real band. They have created some devastating stuff here, but a majority of it is just too easy to forget. The songs did not find their targets too well here, but if you want some punishing death metal with grindcore influence, there are far less intriguing records out there. Masachist pack a lot of promise, but catchier song material wouldn't harm 'em!

Rating: 6 (out of 10) ratings explained

Reviewed by Lane
03/10/2010 13:35