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Impiety > Dominator > 2009, 12" vinyl, Agonia Records > Reviews
Impiety - Dominator

Impiety - Dominator - 65%

ThrashManiacAYD, September 3rd, 2009

Impiety are arguably the most well-known band hailing from Singapore and happen to be a thoroughly unholy mix of Black, Death and Thrash Metal, and not a softer style as one might expect from a 'biggest in the country' tag. The band have been assaulting the eardrums since 1990 and "Dominator" is their first EP since 1997, and shows the band in a more Thrashy style than on the only other previous release I own of theirs - 2004's "Paramount Evil", most evident on "Slaughterror Superiority". That the band doth produce such extreme music with a pleasant level of technicality - i.e. not your simple Hellhammer style nor in-your-face competency like Cryptopsy - is to their credit, meaning songs feature a number of time changes and numerous riffs to attract the listener. Fans of the Black/Death Metal spectrum will find much to like in just the 15 minutes on offer here as the title-track flays along with the spirit of all that is downright down and disgusting but still maintains a certain Metal spirit to a number of it's riffs, be that they are sandwiched between discordant shredding Black Metal solos and numerous blastbeated sections of music.

The listener is even treated to a Sarcófago cover amongst the mêlée, "The Black Vomit" which kicks off with a whirlwind of riffs and drum-pounding, no doubt played far more efficiently than on the Brazilian's ancient original version. "At War With Temujin" reminds me of a slightly more brutal Deströyer 666, with the spiteful vocal style of Shyaithan similar to KK Warslut's of the aforementioned and a concise arrangement of riffs that flow well, mixing in both the brutal and hook-laden. With such a short running time, and effectively just 3 original songs (the first is an introduction piece), the marks can't be high, but for what it is on offer Impiety show no sign of softening or suffering from writer's block after nearly two decades of doing this stuff.

Originally written for Rockfreaks.net

Not revolutionary but if you come around this... - 80%

CHRISTI_NS_ANITY8, February 20th, 2009

Like I already said in my review for Infernal Execration band, Impiety from Singapore is one of the most intransigent and brutal bands in the extreme underground. The members formed the band at the beginning of the 90s and so far we can understand that we must face a band with a quite solid background. The first demos started to came out right after the formation of the band, to continue with five albums, so a quite respectable goal for a band that plays extreme and that is not from the USA or Europe. The genre they play is a voluntary raw and essential black/thrash; the influences come directly from South American bands (Sarcofago mostly) with traces of punk and thrash to be closer to a band like Impaled Nazarene.

The 2008 saw the publication of a new effort by this band, this mini-CD, Dominator. This new work is made of four tracks plus and introduction with strange, battling and Oriental sounds. The clash of the swords and shields arrives with “Introbliteration”. Soon the hyper fast double bass beats enter to introduce the feral “Slaughterror Superiority”: the riffs are dry, raw and really essential to point everything on the sheer impact. The drums are unstoppable with lots of blast beats but we can also remark few tempo changes, without letting the intensity go down. The thrash metal and the black metal clash perfectly together to recreate a perfect hellish atmosphere.

A special mention should be given to the vocals because they are really nasty and brutal, without being excessively yelled. The influences, even in this case, come from Angelcorpse and Sarcofago. “Dominator” song remains of excellent levels of brutality and speed as the few, pure thrash metal breaks are to remark because they add variety and the tempo changes too. “The Black Vomit” is obviously a Sarcofago cover and also in this case the burden of violence remains untouched. The band plays incredibly fast and there’s nothing left so save. This is a brutal approach to the genre and the structure of the cover follows perfectly the original one.

“At War With Temujin” stands out for its fast double bass sections with less blast beats on the snare. There’s even a particular epic touch, the typical one of a war black/death band like Angelcorpse. The riffs are always schizophrenic but also a bit less impulsive in some sections; however expect always more fast restarts! Well, all things considered, this is not a product that will change the entire musical panorama in this genre, but it’s always remarkable for those who love this mixture of black and thrash.