With members in both the US and Germany,
Cambion is an international death metal group built upon hatred and brutality. Their
2015 release, “Unfold Chaos Supreme”, is exactly as the title describes: a
high-quality offering of pure anarchy. One thing about this release is for
sure: it is not for the faint of heart. At the opening of “Bend The Knee (To
Molech)”, the band starts blasting away, and rarely lets up (with a slight exception at the end of "Perfected Aggressor"). This album sounds
like a constant jackhammer, with eerie, twisted tremolo-picked riffs
accompanying the relentless beating of the snare drum (I would seriously
question if a snare drum could even survive one of their songs without
breaking). These elements combine to form something that is truly decrepit and
evil, rather than just brutal. Cambion’s vocalist is likewise a great
complement to this effort, as his vocals blur the line between growls and
shrieks, and ultimately just sound evil. Normally, I would take issue with the
fact that they’ve clearly put his vocals low in the mix, but that just enhances
the atmosphere in this case. It makes his screams sound like he’s trapped and
desperately trying to escape, and it helps keep the riffs in focus even while
he is growling.
Another aspect of “Unfold Chaos Supreme”
that is particularly enjoyable is the guitar solos. If they made any sort of
melodic sense, it just wouldn’t work, which is why the Kreator (“Pleasure to
Kill”-era) and Slayer-styled solos are perfect. A great comparison would be to
Slayer’s “Altar of Sacrifice”, where solos come in seemingly at random and
exist to create an even more hellacious environment. As you may have guessed,
this complete mayhem means that there is little room for anything you can
really cling onto about specific songs. But “Unfold Chaos Supreme” is one of
those instances where it just doesn’t matter. Cambion has set out to assault
your eardrums and they’ve succeeded. If you come to this style of metal for
songwriting, you’re in the wrong place. The only slight exception to this is
the opening of “Perfected Aggressor”, where the riff reminds me of a Cannibal
Corpse riff, but even that song quickly devolves into a
fury of incomprehensible savagery. Overall, if you need a record that oozes
hatred, there is no better choice than “Unfold Chaos Supreme”.
Highlights
All of it
Final Rating
4.2/5 or 84%.
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