Todessehnsucht

Before abandoning the genre in the mid 1990s to go off on a series of tangents that I don't care at all to discuss , Atrocity was perhaps THE European death metal band. They released two albums of killer technical, well written music. The first, "Hallucinations" (a concept album about drug abuse), was a raw and punishing effort showing strong influences from German thrash a la Kreator as well as American death metal in the style of Atheist or Obituary. It was a great album that was very impressive for just a debut. By the time of their 2nd album (released as "Longing For Death" in America) they had evolved far beyond that into something I can only describe as awesome. The songwriting becomes much more intricate while still being highly memorable, and the whole thing exudes a thick atmosphere of gloom and decay. There are hints of classical aspirations in the construction of the songs and their use of themes, and the album is book-ended by variations of the opening theme.

Now onto the music itself. The album opens with orchestral sounds playing a slow and doomy theme which is then taken over by distorted guitars. Many of the riffs feature very interesting chord progressions and harmonies the likes of which I haven't heard in many other places. At times there are riffs that remind me of something like Morbid Angel or Death, though many of them are quite unique. The soloing is at once tasteful and technical, the two guitarists on this album are really amazing to listen to. Bass is present to a degree, though pushed to the background somewhat. You can hear it throwing in some cool ideas in certain bits though, as well as matching the guitars and drums tightly. Speaking of drums, I just love the sound and production of the drums on this album, especially the snare and toms. The playing is imaginative, without an over reliance on blast beats, with a bunch of wicked fills and accents. The vocals are a harsh growl that reminds me of Napalm Death circa "Harmony Corruption" and background screams are layered in choice moments. A segment of Wagner's "Götterdämmerung" is given a death metal twist to devastating effect in "Sky Turned Red", hinting further at the fact that someone in this band had interest in the methods of classical music. The lyrics serve well to highlight the mood of the instrumentals and are very well written in my opinion.

Every song on this album is distinct and packed full of great moments, from epics like "Sky Turned Red" to more heads down and catchy death metal numbers like "Necropolis", which are no less impressive. Indeed the solo from "Necropolis" would be my pick for best guitar lead on the album. The real jewel in the crown though, has to be "A Prison Called Earth". After an onslaught of unforgettable riffing, a brief and moody symphonic part moves into the incredible ending riff that gradually slows down and collapses in on itself, a moment that never fails to blow me away. Then the album returns to where it began with a reprise of the opening track, which launches into one final mesmerizing burst of speed with yet another quality riff, before ceasing abruptly.

From a time of great experimentation in extreme music this is a highlight and something every fan of well written death metal should seek out. It isn't overly pretentious either, this is still death metal and you will be compelled to bang your head many times while listening to this, while admiring the ambitious structure and ideas on display. In my eyes, a total classic.