With bands like Krisiun, Blood Red Throne, Decapitated and other top-level death metal bands putting out new releases this year, I had high hopes for Vile’s new one – Metamorphosis. With six years between full lengths you would expect somewhat of a style change, and their flashy new artwork definitely hinted at these guys going in a Decrepit Birth-style technical direction.

Right out of the gate that premonition proved to be correct, with sweeping riffs and scale runs dominating the first few tracks. With solid double-bass backing the guitars, it is easy to see that these guys still have the chops to get it done in the speed and technicality realm, and each song features a good to really good guitar solo that shows that founding member Colin Davis still has the ability to dance around the fretboard. The songs do somewhat tend to blend together, with a verse-chorus-verse-guitar solo structure that lends a sense of sameness to the album. The album is not all light-speed though, as tracks like “Wolf at Your Door” and “As One” shows the band slowing down a bit and letting the riffs breathe without rushing by before you know what hit you.

One of the weak points of the album is new vocalist Mike Hrubovcak (Abraxas, Monstrosity) who takes over for Juan Urteaga. Now Hrubovcak isn’t bad, but I preferred the lower-register growl of Urteaga on the last album to Hrubovcak’s mid-level vocals. Check out the oddly-placed spoken section in “I Am Alive” that makes Hrubovcak sounds like he’s straining. But his vocals don’t distract from the music even though they don’t vary much outside of said spoken part.

This album is a solid one, and if the band tightens and varies up their song structure they could put together something really good. It is nice though to see them branching out and adding European death metal and even some black metal nuances to the songs. One of the best tracks on the album is actually the instrumental closer “The Redemption”, with one of the catchiest solos of the album coming before the one-minute mark. But the tech-death pool is getting crowded fast, and to stand out you really have to bring the goods. The potential is there for Vile, they just need a little more work.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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