COMATOSE MUSIC just doesn't know how to fail, do they? After the brutal powerhouse of Vitality caved in my proverbial and literal nut sack, the Texas-based band Aversion To Life only made the initial damage worse. Aversion To Life has added a new element to brutal death metal. Rather than focusing on the typical subject matter of this genre, Aversion To Life has decided to take on a very interesting, yet surprisingly insane Satanic aspect within their music.
Their debut album, RITUALIZED MURDER, features some of the most sickening and heinous death metal I've heard in quite some time. The brutality level of this release is so mosh-inducing that I actually found myself going into a one-man pit while listening to it. Drawing influences from their peers in Devourment and Sect of Execration, Aversion To Life brings the slam and they bring it hard. If you're looking for technicality or melody, go somewhere else. This is 100% Texan violence at its best and I couldn't ask for anything better.
The atmosphere on this record (yes, brutal records CAN have atmosphere) goes hand-in-hand with the not-so-subtle Satanic message and has the ability to make one feel as if he himself is being sacrificed on a blood-soaked slab in the name of darkness. I hate to keep harping on this, but it's refreshing. The guys have taken a completely new lyrical and conceptual approach to the music and it works for them!
Musically, there's not a weak moment to be found on this release. The vocals are guttural and spew-worthy, the guitars ravage the listener, and the drum sound is the perfect background for the insanity. It's always nice to hear a brutal record that has a raw, yet clean quality to it and this most certainly does.