Ignivomous-Contragenesis

When will flood of Australian bands stop? The correct answer in never. Australia has always had an amazing scene, giving birth to hordes of bands who respectfully pioneered the sub-genres of extreme metal. From anti-christian black/thrash acts like Mortification, Destroyer 666, Assaulter and Gospel Of The Horns, to devastating black/death outfits like Bestial Warlust, the Australian scene has an abundance of great bands. And the newest addition to there bands is Ignivomous, with their sophomore ''Contragenesis'' which rots of pure old school death metal in the most crushingly grotesque way. While you'd expects Ignivomous to worship Satan and piss on the cross, they actually have much different lyrical content. If you know that Ignivomous means vomiting fire and if you look at the the song titles and album art, then I think you would get the message that these guys are highly eruptive...and dangerous.

The music has lots of Bolt Thrower grooving along with some definite Incantation influence, noteceable from the sonorous and rich sound of the guitar tone. For the most part ''Contragenesis'' focuses on tremolo bursts and outrageous drumming, usually played at full speed. The chords and tremolo chugs may get tangled and collide at times, and that's when the riffs start to sound really cool, with descending dual guitar work and a sufficient amount chunky harmony, all delivered in a frenzied assault. There are certain doomy sections which are also prevalent on the album, combining powerfully struck chords and excellent mid-pace drumming.While the riffs all follow the same style, they never lose energy and effectiveness in dynamics, thus staying surprisingly fresh and spacious. Tracks like the title track and ''Heritage Of The Jackal'' are straightforward, unending powerhouses that simply deliver some might solid riffs in an outrageous temper.

One more reason why the album resembles Incantation so much is because of the vocals, incredibly low, but not raspy at all. The guitars play add pinch harmonics into the tremolo attacks qiute often, as if toying with it. But it's actually quite the opposite, as the music gets pretty damn serious. Every track has the same amount of speed but some may have it less spread out. The extensive use of tremolo riffs never really bores the listener because they are so dominant over energy and keeping the listener entertained, but Ignivomous play some slower riffs that are rather drowsy, nonetheless very good. The tracks may slightly alternate between styles even though there is little space left to vary style as the majority of the riffs are dynamic and rich tremolo picking riffs. During your first few listens, this difference may not be too clear, but as you listen the album will grow on you and your ears will be able to quickly separate the songs, examining them delibarately, secretly in your subconscious.

Not only does ''Contragenesis'' add up to some of the best OSDM albums in Australia's vast reservoir of albums, but it is also runs in front for one the best death metal albums of the year. The immense resemblance of Incantation on this album is innevitable and only gives points to the band for succesfully adopting such a praised sound into their music. The songs are all  drowning and overwhelming with their sheer intesity and robust delivery of old school death metal. So overall ''Contragenesis'' ranks as quite an excellent death metal album, especially with the perfectly balanced amount of doom and death elements used in the mindblowing composition; ''The Final Cadence Of Bloodshed''.

Highlights:
The Final Cadence Of Bloodshed
Monumental Cosmic Transgression
Hierophant
Heritage Of The Jackal

Rating: 91,5%