What are the best death metal albums with space/futuristic/sinister technology themes?

Most of these are kinda obvious but you gotta hear 'em if you haven't yet.





This one is more obscure but also pretty cool:

Dude I can't even begin to make out what that last band is...

Anywho there's always Timeghoul too.

Looks like it's Battalion Slaughtered. The top word is a bit hard to decipher, had to search M-A for 'slaughter'.

Since you asked about our album, yeah, the wait has been pretty long. All recordings are finished, and we have this ex-pro engineer (not) working on it for completely free amidst his very time-consuming job (ironically, he found the job a week after the recordings were finished). We can't really afford to pay anyone to finish it since we're saving money for the actual release, so that's unfortunate for us.

Just today, he responded to me and said he potentially has time to work it next week. Then again, he has said that plenty of times by now.

Well PM me if you want to use someone else. Can't promise it for free but pretty good rates, we can negotiate. I'm referring to my vocalist who also does production work and has a degree in sound engineering. Check my sig for examples.

For the old school death metal fans over here: how many of you are familiar with Venenum? So far they've only written one EP which features 4 actual songs and 3 interludes but it's pretty kick ass material. The guitar tone gives me a Swedish vibe but I can't think of any obvious bands that they sound alike. Their songs consist of sinister and eerie riffs without sounding silly or as they're trying too hard: in fact this one of the few bands that I keep coming back to because they deliver well...some of the other old school death metal bands of the latest years sound fun for a few times but then lose their value. That's not the case for me with Venenum at all and I hope that they'll write an actual full length album soon.

So...

1. Can anyone point me to some death metal bands that REALLY know how to groove well? (criteria: a thick, heavy sound)
2. Anyone knows some bands that know how to mix slams together with regular BDM? (like Devourment & Abominable Putridity, etc.)
3. Anyone knows some old-school revival death metal bands, preferably ones that mix some black metal into it, but they don't HAVE to.

@ colin040 - Yeah, Venenum is alright. Nothing truly amazing but it serves up the OSDM ears well enough, although I do think that EP is a bit samey in terms of dynamics and general atmosphere. I don't really know how I got to them, but I do recall I was listening to Vanhelgd at the time. There's another band with big potential but that I feel that doesn't really deliver all that it could. Oh wait, now I remember why I got to hear them, because of Beyond. Yet another case of a band that could be awesome but doesn't achieve its potential. Anyway, moving on...

@ LeMiserable:

1. Hum... Bolt Thrower much?! Try Baphomet/Banished, Rottrevore or Miasma. Come to think of it, I seem to be recommending these bands an awful lot lately.
2. Not my field of operations. Try casting the spell of "summon MCF" for good recommendations on that style.
3. Are you familiar with Grave Miasma? How about Imprecation (not exactly revival but should do the trick)?

I summon thee, oh might MutantClannfear! And to bring thee here, I shall now present 3 sacred words:

Viraemia, Cephalotripsy & Epicardiectomy.

...

Let's see if this works.

1, 2 : Katalepsy - Autopsychosis, Disentomb - Misery. Others could include: Defeated Sanity, Pathology, Kraanium, Epicardiectomy

Anyone can recommend me some goregrind that's firmly rooted in death metal? I mean that in the sense that it isn't constant vomit-gurgled blasting with little musical merit, but more something like early Carcass, Exhumed, General Surgery, Impaled (more of a death metal band), The Country Medical Examiners...

I'm really for the kind of bands that actually feel like creating good music instead of trying to be as brutal as possible.

Are you familiar with Splatterhouse?

My guess is that you'll dig Necrony. Everything in their catalogue is bloody expensive though...

Also Altar of Giallo and Gruesome Stuff Relish are possibly your thing

Haemorrhage is probably my favorite goregrind band, and very much along the lines of the bands you listed.

http://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Haemorrhage/2556

I'd also recommend the similar artists feature. You will find quite a few good ones there as well.

You might also really dig Pathologist from Czech:
http://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Pathologist/2804
Great old-style gore/death

hey all I was hoping for some death metal that is really thrash influenced like vader. also im really into bands with political lyrics (dying fetus,misery index, man must die, napalm death) preferably leaning more leftist but I don't mind whatever direction it goes to as long as its good.

Yes diazemon, killer band from Singapore called Absence of the Sacred... in fact, terrific guitars all round.

This is from their second album, which actually consists of some of their earliest material:


Another (very) Vader styled band is GxSxD from Japan. Unfortunately I couldn't find a YouTube clip that wasn't a horrendously poor recording from a gig, but trust me when I say that they are awesome. It's worth the pain in the arse to find their stuff.

Can't help you with political stuff of any kind. The guys from Cattle Decapitation and Ulcerate are vegan as far as I am aware, so they're probably pretty lefty as people, if that helps?

Thanks jon absecence was really good and GxSxD was what I was mainly looking.Yeah i know cattle decapitation but there production except on the last one always spunds so empty I could never really get into them and Ulcerate was ok Ill have to look more into there albums.

Hey guys. Let me preface this by saying that I had never even listened to a (mostly) pure death metal album in full prior to a few days ago. To be honest the reason was not even because I was put off by the sound, it was more the fact that it's such a massive genre and therefore rather overwhelming to dive into for the first time. For the past 5 years I chose rather than explore new genres, to instead stay within my comfort zone of thrash/prog metal and deeply explore all the sub-genres and learn about all those obscure bands from the 80's and early 90's that really made some under appreciated masterpieces.

However the other day while browsing I came across an ebay auction for Messiah - Rotten Perish. The logo definitely screamed death metal, not thrash, but for whatever reason I chose to take a listen on Youtube. I would not have guessed I would have sat there for nearly an hour listening to the whole thing. I loved it. I suspect it was the subtle thrashy elements and tempo changes that captured me and kept me listening. I'm not going to try to analyze it any further since as I said I don't know death metal, and perhaps many of you guys think this album is crap.

Nevertheless, I really enjoyed it and if you guys know any other bands/albums that are similar or you think I might enjoy I would really appreciate it! I am exited but nervous to explore this further

Based on a cursory glance at Messiah, and considering your thrash/prog background, the typical approach of listening to the Death discography would seem like the appropriate course of action.

Ilwhyan had a good recommendation.

The obvious thing would be to recommend death/thrash, but personally I think a lot of death/thrash tends to be inaccessible to those uninitiated to the more extreme elements of death metal.

Some groovy death metal bands like Jungle Rot have a lot of thrash elements.

Jungle Rot - Terror Regime

Dethklok is a little thrashy/proggy and not extreme.

Dethklok - Dethalbum III

Edge of Sanity may satisfy your desire for "progressive" with a death metal twist.

Edge of Sanity - Crimson

Legion of the Damned straddles the line between death and thrash.

Legion of the Damned - Son of the Jackal

Probably the first death metal album I found accessible way back when was this one.

Massacre - From Beyond


You're right. The death metal genre is huge ... and confusing. For all the things that are supposed to define a death metal band I can pick out death metal bands who don't do it. But somehow you know death metal when you hear it. I heard my first death metal in the late 80's and I still don't like 80% of it. But what I do like I can't get enough of. So don't give up on it too soon.

Haha indeed, actually I have listened to the majority of Death's work, somehow I forgot to mention them, I guess because who hasn't heard of them I enjoy pretty much all their albums, but Symbolic is by far my favorite.

As for Smitty's recommendations, Jungle Rot and Edge of Sanity both seem pretty cool from a quick listen, thanks!

@ kyzanar - I'll give some input as well.

There are a few names on the similar artists tab that you could try, but they're a bit rough around the edges like Smitty said. Nevertheless do try Thanatos' Realm Of Ecstasy, which features some degree of accessibility in terms of an overt thrash presence and a bit of melody; any of Merciless' first three albums, although you may want to give The Treasures Within a shot first because The Awakening is blunt as fuck, and while Unbound is the more melodic of the three is does get a bit more blackened; Massacra's first three as well, but start off with Enjoy The Violence; and Protector's A Shedding Of Skin if you're up to some really violent stuff.

Seeing that you come from a more melodic base I think you should approach some old classics first and work your way from there on. Bands like Malevolent Creation or Monstrosity with their first couple of albums are great for someone getting into death metal with a thrashy edge, and they let you enough room to breathe, if you catch my drift. If you enjoy early MC do try Solstice's self-titled as well, though it has a bit of a crossover influence. You have stuff like Disincarnate's only album, Morbid Angel's Blessed Are The Sick (or Altars if you're up for a more violent and less ritualistic affair), Obituary's Cause Of Death, Pestilence's Consuming Impulse, Carcass' Necroticism (or Heartwork if you want a more melodic edge), Brutality's Screams Of Anguish, and Nocturnus' The Key (although that may prove a challenging listen at this point, but the prog influence may check in with you).

Long ass list I know, but all of those are brilliant classics on their own and they should give you some listening experience and help you understand what you like or dislike. Then there's a lot lot more, I didn't even mention Sweden at this point!

Or Bolt Thrower

I know I know! I was meant to rec them, but I was keeping things more or less in line with the thrashy US sound, so to speak. BT is all kinds of great, but for someone who's making the transition into thrash based death metal I feel that it may come off as off putting for him.

Bolt Thrower... off putting... does not compute.

Ha! I originally had that on my list, but decided to take it off. Probably my favorite death/thrash album, but I thought it might be just a tad too extreme (although by the standards of a lot of other stuff out there it's pretty mild). Might've even been you that recommended it to me a couple of years ago. Can't hurt to listen though.

I agree, most people from a thrash background (like me) need to be eased into death metal. If you would have played something like Hideous Divinity a few years ago I would have run from the room. It's just too overwhelming. Now ... eh, not bad. That's why I think a lot of the groovy death bands are not a big stretch when it comes to accessibility for people coming from thrash. Maybe Vomitory's Opus Mortis VIII, Six Feet Under's Unborn, Bone Gnawer's Feast of Flash. I think it's much harder to satisfy the "progressive" part. I guess Opeth would be the consensus choice.

Oh come on, y'all yanking my chains...

Thrash background -> thrashy death metal recs, simple as that. And I fucking adore Bolt Thrower, probably as much as Neurosis. That says a lot!

Bolt Thrower sounds incredible guys, thanks! Already put in an order for Those Once Loyal.

As for Protector, they are amazing too although I knew of them already, I consider them more thrash than death metal. Unfortunately it's about impossible to find a legit copy of A Shedding of Skin for under 50 bucks

Well, excuse me while I go into the back alley to eat my hat (or a fucking shotgun!).

Glad you liked BT mate, it's really one of the best death metal bands ever. And yeah, Protector is sadly very expensive.

I find Bolt Thrower to be hugely overrated and frankly boring. But that doesn't really matter. kyzanar, if you like the tech/kinda-melodic DM of Death (and the death/thrash version of Messiah), maybe try to find some more metal in that vein? It's not really to my tastes, especially not the thrashy death bands, but there is some stuff I like.. Check out Afflicted - Prodigal Son or Atrocity - Hallucinations

Yeah I was, sorry androdion

Your punishment for said infraction will be to listen to The Unspoken King on repeat for twelve hours. Go now my son, and let all your sins be cleansed.

I think I'll just leave my sins un-cleansed

Ha ha ha, yeah I imagine you will.

Excellent DM primer right there. Nearly everything you named is freaking essential.

Speaking of Hideous Divinity, has anyone here picked up 'Cobra Verde' yet? The couple of tracks I've heard sounded quite promising.

I have. Definitely get it. If you liked their last one, you'll like Cobra Verde, too. Hideous Divinity are at the top of their game again.

I thinks it's good ~ very good, but I don't love the vocals. Still growing on me, I guess.