How do people come up with these band names..? Livarkahil. What did you say?! Well, French band Livarkahil strike with their sophomore album 'Signs of Decay'. Its concept is religios autocracy. Religion is used as a control tool and religious leaders are also political leaders. All for good and God? No, but all for power and profit...

Even though Livarkahil hail from Paris, they sound quite a lot like modern Polish extreme metal metal. Vader, Behemoth, Hate, Lost Soul... Those are a few names that circle in my mind when giving 'Signs of Decay' some spinning. Livarkahil sound familiar, that's the biggest con about them. However, when forgetting that, or rather, not giving it a damn, they start to sound much better. They are in possession of some good evil-sounding riffage. And their rhythmic quality is also good. Add to that huge bellowing vocals, and the soup gets tasty enough (and Lyzanxia bring in some HC growls and shrieks). The songs aren't over-stretched in their duration, and there are appropriate pack of tricks on these guys' sleeves, but still no sufficiently. Sound-wise the album is pretty packed, but not as much that it'd asphyxiate because of it. Very modern, but not even close to the worst cases out there.

Industrial and march-like 'In Nomine Patris...' works well as an introduction to this modern-sounding, religion-bashing opus. 'When Hell Is Near' showcases the tempo shifts and variety in songwriting, which both help songs to breathe without much of restrain. This is quite a common affliction with extreme metal like this, as it gets too crammed. 'The End of Everything' and 'Art of Bleeding' feature some non-distorted guitar work, which surely enliven the album. '...We All Hail the Victory' is an instrumental with engrossing rhythms and guitars.

To tell the truth: While the band can throw good and interesting parts at a listener to chew on, as compositions, I think these eleven pieces could have been more striking at times. They are too often repeating some of the tricks here, that's what makes 'Signs of Decay' awkward to be sit through in one go. Livarkahil won't get a prize for their uniqueness, but they offer good modern and brutal blasting. But to climb on the next level, they need to find out somethnig of their own next time around. So close, but still too far!

Rating: 7- (out of 10) ratings explained

Reviewed by Lane
10/22/2011 13:01