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Fallujah - The Flesh Prevails review




Bandcamp music player
Reviewer:
9.1

236 users:
8.26
Band: Fallujah
Album: The Flesh Prevails
Release date: July 2014


01. Starlit Path
02. Carved From Stone
03. The Night Reveals
04. The Flesh Prevails
05. Levitation
06. Alone With You
07. Allure
08. Sapphire
09. Chemical Cave

Fallujah have undergone quite the evolution since their debut EP. Beginning life as an out-and-out deathcore band with nothing more than inventive riffs and a few blackened passages to set them apart, they have introduced more progressive and atmospheric elements with each release. The Flesh Prevails marks a true change in Fallujah, from better-than-average players in a populous scene to innovators of a rising and complex one.

Fallujah's riffs melt over each other like butter one minute and grind each other into a fine paste the next. Their solos waltz in and out like they own the place, dripping warm, full-bodied notes over landscapes that alternate between scorching tech death and synth-borne atmospheres. Aggression is well-placed - tempered without being confined, indulged without being reckless. Fallujah know how to effectively employ heart-stopping technicality without bulldozing through these nine songs; their combination of brutal heaviness and thoughtful atmospherics makes this album not only unique but a magnificent work of art.

The Flesh Prevails superimposes forceful growls and destructive drumming over a flowing, spacey blanket of reflective dream sounds; the impeccable solos bridge the gap, effortlessly dancing from chilled-out noodling to metallic fret domination as if nothing truly separated the two. With the ease, grace, and poise of a ballet-dancing neurosurgeon, Fallujah flit and slide and catapult from note to note, sound to sound in a waterfall of sweet-smelling luxury. This album is a rainbow cascade of cold, hard metal and sublime, cool synthscapes all in perfect balance.

The Flesh Prevails exhibits a mature, graceful Fallujah - a Fallujah that knows exactly what it wants to sound like and how to achieve it. This album succeeds all the way through, from "Starlit Path" to "Chemical Cave"; not a note out of place, not one more or less than is needed. By far, this is Fallujah's best release thus far.


Rating breakdown
Performance: 10
Songwriting: 9
Originality: 8
Production: 8





Written on 22.07.2014 by I'm the reviewer, and that means my opinion is correct.


Comments

Comments: 16   Visited by: 374 users
22.07.2014 - 13:07
Zap
Guest
Great review, the band seems to be maturing indeed. I liked the first album, but this one easily beats that.
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22.07.2014 - 14:53
Rating: 8
JayMo4

I love tech death, but there are too many bands in the genre that are doing little more than imitating each other. The artists that are able to break that barrier and really create something unique are the ones that most pique my interest. Great to hear Fallujah doing exactly that.
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22.07.2014 - 15:45
oshgar

Really enjoyed this more than I expected to. I agree, a good mixture of aggression and atmosphere, which is hard to find without one sounding too forced. Definitely a contender for death metal album of the year for me
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22.07.2014 - 15:51
UnknownCheese

What's with deathcore bands these days going "progressive" with all the keyboards and atmospherics? This is too close to BoO territory for me.
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22.07.2014 - 16:53
LascaillesShroud

This album has brilliant songs but is INSANELY fucking loud. I almost couldn't believe how loud this album was
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22.07.2014 - 19:19
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
Written by UnknownCheese on 22.07.2014 at 15:51
What's with deathcore bands these days going "progressive" with all the keyboards and atmospherics? This is too close to BoO territory for me.

Because that's what's in right now. I'm not saying all deathcore bands are trend-hoppers, but some of them definitely are. When you look around and see the success of some of these progressive deathcore bands and how they go on all these tours backed by big labels and they sell a lot of merch, and then all of a sudden the scene explodes with all these wannabe carbon copies...

I'm not saying it's limited to deathcore. Every genre of music has these vulture types. Although, from what I understand Fallujah have somewhat of a big following already and probably shouldn't be considered as trend-hoppers.
----
"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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22.07.2014 - 19:44
LeKiwi
High Fist Prog
Written by UnknownCheese on 22.07.2014 at 15:51

What's with deathcore bands these days going "progressive" with all the keyboards and atmospherics? This is too close to BoO territory for me.

Doesn't sound anything like BoO though...
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22.07.2014 - 20:13
UnknownCheese

Written by LeKiwi on 22.07.2014 at 19:44

Written by UnknownCheese on 22.07.2014 at 15:51

What's with deathcore bands these days going "progressive" with all the keyboards and atmospherics? This is too close to BoO territory for me.

Doesn't sound anything like BoO though...


Have you ever heard The Discovery? This is the same sort of synth heavy, sweepy quasi death metal.
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22.07.2014 - 20:40
Zap
Guest
Written by JayMo4 on 22.07.2014 at 14:53

I love tech death, but there are too many bands in the genre that are doing little more than imitating each other. The artists that are able to break that barrier and really create something unique are the ones that most pique my interest.

True for almost every genre I'd say.
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22.07.2014 - 20:58
Rating: 8
JayMo4

Written by Zap on 22.07.2014 at 20:40
True for almost every genre I'd say.


It is. I guess it stands out in tech death right now because it's one of the hot genres at the moment. But you're certainly right.
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22.07.2014 - 21:30
oshgar

Written by UnknownCheese on 22.07.2014 at 20:13

Written by LeKiwi on 22.07.2014 at 19:44

Written by UnknownCheese on 22.07.2014 at 15:51

What's with deathcore bands these days going "progressive" with all the keyboards and atmospherics? This is too close to BoO territory for me.

Doesn't sound anything like BoO though...


Have you ever heard The Discovery? This is the same sort of synth heavy, sweepy quasi death metal.


I can definitely see the comparison between the two, but I find this to be a much better mixture of synth and the death metal. BoO always sounded like the synths were kind of tacked-on and never gelled to well with the rest of the music.
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22.07.2014 - 22:08
Zap
Guest
Written by JayMo4 on 22.07.2014 at 20:58

I guess it stands out in tech death right now because it's one of the hot genres at the moment.

Yes, that makes a lot of sense
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22.07.2014 - 22:46
LeKiwi
High Fist Prog
Written by UnknownCheese on 22.07.2014 at 20:13

Have you ever heard The Discovery? This is the same sort of synth heavy, sweepy quasi death metal.

I've heard it. First deathcore record that I actually enjoyed. This album and TD sound nothing alike though barring the fact that they use similar tones and whatnot.
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13.11.2014 - 01:06
Rating: 9
Rsrdaman

Spot on review, incredible how much these guys have evolved since their first EP.
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11.12.2020 - 09:55
VikinkiQc

Unlistenable album ! HR rating wayyyyy to high ! Can't stand more than 2 straight songs ! Musicianship A+, production E minus !
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11.12.2020 - 10:00
VikinkiQc

*DR
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