Sacrifice

I remember when couple of years ago I was contacted by a Brazilian dude Daniel Silva, who informed me about his new band Incarceration and the digital split with Escarnium, which he did and which was titled “Decrepit Aberration”. Meanwhile Daniel moved over to Germany, found some musicians, who joined his band and now almost two years later I can listen to the first official Incarceration release, which is “Sacrifice” 7” single, released by Dawnbreed Records from Holland. Cool! This limited to 500 copies EP is truly a feast for death metal maniacs and I dare to say that it won’t leave anyone careless as this is truly awesome and lethal piece of old school filthy slab of death metal. OK, it may not be quite as brilliant as some other stuff, which you can listen to nowadays from bands like Lifeless, Slaughterday, Revel In Flesh or Chapel of Disease, to stay just within the Germania borders, but there’s enough great riffing and eerie, horror atmosphere in Incarceration to enjoy their music as well. Besides, this is only their debut recording, so I can only imagine what will this Brazilian / German project prepare next, how fierce their next attack will be.

“Sacrifice” is a 7” vinyl, so obviously there’s not much music, three songs are closed in ten minutes. but within these ten minutes there’s so much ferocity, viciousness, aggression and powerful energy that it will be enough to cause a hear damage and eye bleed, when you start the maniacal headbanging and your neck gets hurt. Just listen to the first song “Forsaken and Forgotten” – that fierce, slaying riffing, tempo, which is fast all the way through – from start to finish… Excellent, violent song. “Sacrifice” is again simply killer, again quite fast, but maybe with a little bit more variety, so the tempo is not constantly fast, but there’re some slower fragments as well. And there is always a memorable chorus, so you will be able to scream it while shaving. “Cemetery of Life”, “Sacrifice”… Result is crushing. Yeah, and if you like bands such as Omnizide, Verminous and Degial, then Incarceration will be perfect for you. So, remember this band name, they are one of these new generation old styled death metal bands, which we all love so much, even if their music is not original at all. I’m ready for more bloodshed.
Final rate: 80/100

F.D.A. Rekotz have been putting out some killer stuff lately, what with the latest from Skeletal Remains and Chapel Of Disease. The Sacrifice EP from Brazilian bred, German-based upstarts Incarceration carries on this trend, standing as a very promising introduction to a band I certainly hope to hear more from in the future.

Blending some homegrown Brazilian influences ala Sepultura or even Torture Squad together with some sickening Swedish influence cut from the likes of Dismember, Repugnant and early Entombed/Nihilist, Incarceration come off sounding quite a bit like Excoriate – although a little more succinct – which is fine in my book. The vocals are ideal here, and certainly fall into my preferred style in the genre. Mixing in some early Max Cavalera with Matti Kärki and mixed to a style similar to that of Repugnant or Vampire.

Performance and production are just right for the sound Incarceration are aiming for, and their approach is decidedly straight to the point. I can imagine these songs would be a lot of fun live, as they're all fairly speedy riff bludgeons; perfect for letting off some steam. Whilst this sound has been done quite a bit, it's certainly something I personally can't get enough of, especially considering Incarceration play with boundless energy and conviction, making this all the more enjoyable and believable. A cracking EP that fans of old school death metal should seek without hesitation, doubly so if the fusion of Brazilian and Swedish schools sounds particularly enticing. It's jus a shame this is over too soon!

Originally written for http://www.metalcrypt.com

Now residing in Germany by way of Brazil, "Sacrifice" is the debut EP from Incarceration and I hereby declare it is bloody brilliant. With a classic '-tion' style name the band reside squarely in the old school death metal category on this EP, their second release only since a 2010 formation, feeding off a mixture of the classic Swedish DM sound (Nihilist, Unleashed) and the more extreme end of thrash (early Slayer, Sepultura and Dark Angel come to mind) with the result sounding approximate with Angelcorpse but with a level of spite and aggression all of its own. Short-release EPs can often make do without the variation needed to make an album great, and while "Sacrifice" does vary the ante in these brief 10 minutes, the sheer force of will creates a claustrophobic density of riffs and a surreal punch in the face that leaves you wanting more at its conclusion.

Shortest of the three tracks, opener "Forsaken and Forgotten" blends Unleashed-esque groove with a grinding tendency that brings to mind the almost totally unknown but equally brilliant EP from Terror (the short-lived before-they-were-famous supergroup of Jon Nödtveidt, Adrian Erlandsson and the Björler brothers in the early 90s). "Sacrifice" is more straight-up Sadistic Intent, early Sepultura death metal set around a crushing rhythm riff in its middle, during which the reverberatingly hoarse vocals of Daniel Duracell are exposed. By way of judgement they sit perfectly with the level of aggression on display - audible, aggressive yet controlled. "Cemetery of Lies" wastes no time in getting down to business with a swirling riff leading the onslaught of vocals through the song's three minutes, no thought of respite entertained.

Whether this promise carries into their first LP remains to be seen but Incarceration have made a start here no fan of old school death metal should reject. Hurry up though if you want the vinyl or cassette editions, naturally they are very limited in quantity.

Originally written for www.Rockfreaks.net