After classic Swedish death metal, my second favorite style is the burly, blasting, but measured, commanding death metal that’s a step below tech death, that the early Floridian (Monstrosity, Deicide, etc.), New York (Suffocation, Dying Fetus) and Polish scene (Behemoth, Vader, Hate, etc.) did so well, and was encapsulated perfectly last year by the likes of Abysmal Dawn, Lago, Annihilated and Dyscarnate.

So what happens when a group of Dutch death metal veterans from bands like Detonation, God Dethroned, Erebus, and Prostitute Disfigurement get together and play a sci fi/space (Apophys is take on the name ‘99942 Apophis’, a comet that is predicted to come dangerously close to earth in 2029) based formed of this style? Well you get a pretty prefect example of this style of modern death metal.

Technical but restrained in its blasting, but full of huge militant grooves, Prime Incursion is a no nonsense death metal record from start to finish. Even with its celestial themes, there’s no wasted energy of spacey interludes or such, just pure, unabashed precise brutality. The guitars are big and crisp and the drums of Michiel van der Plicht (God Dethroned, Winter of Sin) are furious. The tech aspect is never self-indulgent and the double bass marches never overstay or force the album into anything breakdown-y or remotely core related.

From opener “Dimensional Odyssey” to closer “The Red Planet” the album is as satisfying as a modern death metal record can be. Highlights are pretty common, but I prefer the more controlled, authoritative, groove littered tracks like “Miscreants”, “Requiem for the Absurd”, “The Sentient”, the huge lurch of “The Final Step” or personal favorite, the album’s 6 minute mid point epic, “Ego” which does a little of everything. However, the the pure fury of “The Antidote” or “Humanity’s Epilogue” certainly hit like a meteor storm on the hull of a derelict spaceship.

In all, a nice death metal release from Metal Blade, who haven’t had top notch death metal record since Cannibal Corpse‘s A Skeletal Domain last fall. And a nice shiny new band from the Netherlands as well, which is always a good thing. Let’s hope there are more albums from these guys in the future up until 2029.

[Visit the band's website]

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