CD review SLAUGHTERDAY "Laws of the Occult"

(8/10) Obscenity and BK49, that's the musical background of Jens Finger and Bernd Reiners, both sailing under the banner of Slaughterday.

The guys from Northern Germany inked a deal with FDA Rekotz and April 29th is the release date of Slaughterhouse's new album "Laws of the Occult". The longplayer features ten death metal anthems (actually it's nine plus an intro) that are inspired by bands like Autopsy and Massacre. This means that we are facing oldschool death metal, something the band archived already on earlier releases, like the debut "Nightmare Vortex" from 2013.

The beginning sounds like a dismal calmness before a real metal storm breaks loose. "Unseal the Gate" is the right chosen opener. It's a one minute intro, followed by a raging riff assault called "Ritual of Sacrfice". Slaughterday unleashes a musical inferno that's built on some real oldschool sounds. What dominates the songs are the growls of Reiners in combination with Finger's brutal riffing. I was more than once reminded of the early Death while listening to "Laws of the Occult", something that gets very obvious by listening to the solo of "Church of Dread".

"Torn by the Beast" or the galloping harsh "Eyes That Never Shut" are tracks that are death metal pearls, winning you over by a sound that brings back the early days of death metal.

And last but not least Slaughterday counts on a cover version of a Hallows Eve classic. "Plunging of Megadeath" is a well-done version that might not be better than the original, but it's in my point of view more brutal and hits bulls eye.

All in all "Laws of the Occult" became a longplayer that shows Slaughterday in a top condition. The guys are on their way to become one of the best German death metal bands and it's an album that underlines FDA Rekotz' sure feeling for excellent bands.

(8/10)

Tracklist:

1. Unseal The Gate
2. Ritual Of Sacrifice
3. Sepulchral Ways
4. Beyond Body, Beyond Life
5. Torn By The Beast
6. Church Of Dread
7. Eyes That Never Shut
8. Feeding The Ghouls
9. Forbidden Wisdom
10. Plunging to Megadeath

Label: FDA Rektz

Genre: Death Metal

Release Date EU: April 29th, 2016