Invocation

I was shown several promo ads for Vulnificus throughout the last few months, and when it came out, I decided to wait a little bit longer to really let my thoughts on this new EP form. I will say this; after a few listens, it's not awful, but it really doesn't impress often enough, especially compared to the various other bands from which these guys hail. The following critiques may sound highly negative, but I more want to point out areas the band should improve upon for when they're ready to make their first LP. I think Wilson and Eston have a lot of potential to make something quite awesome, but this EP has a few key problems which cause it to be less enjoyable than it could be.

First of all, the mix on here favors certain aspects far too much, such as the snare and vocals, both of which are often the only audible aspects when the whole band is playing. This isn't true for the instrumental track, Instruments of Indiscrimination, which is actually my favorite on here, as there are no growls to crowd everything out. However, compare that one to its antecedent and subsequent tracks, and you'll understand what I'm saying. The vocals are just so damn loud! I want to hear more of those good riffs that populate the instrumental track, I know they are there somewhere, but it's just not really accessible to the ear, it all totally blends together, becoming mostly just distorted noise. I'm not asking for prog metal cleanliness, (this is brutal death after all,) all I want is to be able to hear the rather interesting bass work and frantic guitars instead of a seemingly impregnable sonic wall.

You might think I hate the vocals, but that's really not true, I think they're more than good enough, they just don't sit right in the mix. Eston's growls aren't the only thing I want to hear from this band, but they end up being pretty much the one thing a listener can focus on, and so this release becomes quite one-dimensional on a full listen, only changing it up for that one instrumental track. Eston's vocals would be just fine if given the proper sonic treatment, but alas. I think what really sucks about all this is that Wilson's performance is pretty much entirely buried under all that noise, save for a few fun bass interludes here and there. I know for a fact he's not just playing fuck all, the instrumental track proves he's got talent, it's just not hearable for some reason, which is so weird to me, because Wilson is 75% of the band. One would think he'd want to be heard, but I guess not?

If I may offer a few more criticisms, the titles need a little bit of work as well. I mean, come on, Viral Virus? Gee I wonder what a virus is, could it be that it is in fact, necessarily viral? Not every title needs such alliteration, but they all get that treatment regardless. Another lesser serviceable aspect are the lyrics, which are actually pretty good, but perhaps could have been slightly more poetic. I find that vague yet poignant lines from death metal bands often outdo straightforward, spoon-feedy lyrics. Vulnificus gets that aspect just right on Coerced into Compliance, but tends to be lyrically practical to a greater degree on other tracks. To be as objective and nit-pick free as I can be though, the lyrics really aren't bad at all, I just think there's a slight bit of room for improvement.

Aside from that rather major production aspect and those two lesser, serviceable quirks, this is still enjoyable. Unfortunately though, for me, some of those issues actually detract a lot from the experience, but I think it doesn't have to be that way next time. Hopefully Vulnificus can improve upon those three things and deliver a truly killer slice of brutal death metal next time, something I fully believe they are capable of.