Macabre Decay - Into Oblivion

Macabre Decay

Into Oblivion

by Matt Bozenda at 27 July 2021, 1:51 PM

Articles and analyses have been made and can be read all the livelong day about the correlation between Scandinavia and Metal music. Every root from the culture, the climate, the history, and even the food has been dissected and evaluated. Here at Metal Temple, we’ve boiled it down to a simple mantra; if that’s where it came from, then you should probably listen to it.

Known primarily for its contributions to the sport of Bandy (like hockey but with a ball), the town of Söderhamn, Sweden is also a beacon of Old School Death Metal thanks to the local sons of MACABRE DECAY. Their approach to the orthodoxy has been resoundingly modern, and with their second full-length album “Into Oblivion”, the band is making their own mark in a genre bursting with legends.

Starting with “Icon”, the standard ideals of the style are on full display, but three curious breaks, which are very jarring but also very strong, change the song’s dynamic even while maintaining momentum. Then “Impenitent Homicide” comes on sounding so old school it could pass as a generic cover. That’s followed by the album’s title track, which retains the classical sensibilities it’s thus far had while also creating a decidedly modern tune.

“Utterly Helpless” comes next with a steady continuation of the overall sound, while also containing an expertly-built headbanging bridge. An acoustic interlude marks the album’s half before “Altered Flesh” explores a little with some almost Goth sounding backing guitars.

The album’s longest track at a bit under five-and-a-half minutes, “Wall Of Bones” changes to a torquier gear as it gets about as Heavy as Death Metal typically allows. The foot hits the gas again for “Last Breath”, which revives the technique of shunting breaks used in the opener, and to great effect.

A textbook track is what you’ll hear on “Beauty In Carnage”, employing the same procedure as they used in the title track of being classic-but-modern. The final song, “Kräks, Förruttnelse Och Våld”, does the perfect album microcosm, giving a little taste from each preceding track, before it ends rather unceremoniously.

Without anything else going for it, this album would get an ‘A’ for effort, but that’s the beauty part; “Into Oblivion” has a lot of things going for it. The musicians have real talent; everyone is playing exactly what they should, and the vocals, growling throughout, fit the music like a spiked-leather glove. Each track (apart from the interlude) could be considered for the All-2021 Playlist under their own merits and the album as a whole should be considered for Death Metal Album Of The Year.

If ‘Breaking Bad’ had been about Death Metal, Heisenberg would’ve had MACABRE DECAY to challenge his purity. It’s Old School Death Metal without an extreme crust; it should be palatable to the casual metalhead, and while it is not likely to win many fans who weren’t already looking for something like this, for those in the know, “Into Oblivion” should be a no-brainer.

Musicianship: 8
Songwriting: 8
Memorability: 8
Production: 8