Severed Savior - Servile Insurection (2008)

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Brutal Death Metal/Progressive Death Metal

USA
Full-length, Willowtip Records
November 25th, 2008

1. Question 04:43 [view lyrics] 2. Inverted And Inserted 04:11 [view lyrics] 3. Rewards of Cruelty 03:12 [view lyrics] 4. Fuck The Humans 03:24 [view lyrics] 5. Hemorrhagic Gastroenteritis 00:57 6. Intervallo del Tradimento 00:50 7. Acts of Sedition 04:05 [view lyrics] 8. Fecalphiliac 03:04 [view lyrics] 9. Spoils of War 03:34 [view lyrics] 10. Deadspeak 03:32 [view lyrics] 11. Servile Insurrection 03:14 [view lyrics] Total playing time 34:39

Review originally posted at http://www.teethofthedivine.com by Erik Thomas

Though some may consider The East coast and Florida the main stays of US death metal, but for the home of technical, brutal death metal, you need to consider that in California there are such amazing death metal acts as Deeds of Flesh, Vile, Brain Drill, Decrepit Birth, Odious Mortem and Severed Savior, who after five years have finally released the follow up to Brutality is Law.

Personally, I thought Brutality Is Law was a pretty standard Unique Leader affair, but on the Willowtip released follow up, Severed Savior have appeared to make a Decrepit Birth like development and evolution in their already technical brutal sound. Like Decrepit Birth, Severed Savior also recruited an Odious Mortem member to help out, vocalsit Anthony Trapani, he along with the addition of Mike Gilbert on Guitars to the core of bassist Murray Fitzpatrick and drummer Troy Fullerton appears to have added some flare and memorability to Servile Insurrection.

Like Psycroptic’s Ob(Servant) earlier this year, and Decrepit Birth’s Diminishing Between Worlds, Servile Insurrection simply raises the bar for what can be done with technical/brutal death metal nowadays. Stupefying complexity melds with pummeling brutality and even some unexpected tangents (i.e end of opener “Questions”, “Servile Insurrection”). However, while the band has musically evolved and developed some truly jaw dropping music, and even melodies, the lyrics not penned by Trapani appear to revert back to 8th grade (”Fecalphilliac”). Musically though, the likes of “Inverted and Inserted”, “Rewards of Cruelty”, “Fuck the Humans”, “Acts of Sedition”, “Spoils of War” and the closing title track are at times, simply jaw dropping in their execution, heaviness and complexity. Even interlude “Intervallo del Tradimento” is superbly done. And whereas some of Ob(Servant)’s tracks overstayed their welcome, Severed Savior keep all their assaults in the 3-4 minute range.

The only downside to this spectacular addition to 2008s already superb death metal releases s that, partially to the punishing but familiar Zach Ohren production and the swapping of members, some of these bands sound a little similar, and frankly playing this side by side to say, Odious Mortem’s Cryptic Implosion, it was difficult to tell which was which.