Sunday, May 8, 2016

Post Mortal Possession – Forest of the Damned

Forest of the Damned” is the second EP from American death metal band Post Mortal Possession. Their first release was an entertaining slab of death metal, and the follow-up isn’t all that different in that regard. For those new to the band, they unleash plenty of riffs that show off some skill beyond the simple tremolo-picked progressions that a lot of death metal bands use (not to disparage those riffs, as they rule too, and Post Mortal Possession does use a few of them). Some of the more technical riffs feature short palm-muted runs up or down the fretboard. The drumming is similarly complicated to match this wizardry. Whether through double bass, blast beats, or some insane fills, Post Mortal Possession’s drummer ensures you know just how good he is.

One area where “Forest of the Damned” does differ from its predecessor (or at least my recollection of it) is in its vocal approach. On this release, the band’s growler takes somewhat of a one-dimensional, brutal death metal approach. This fits the occasions where the band implements some chuggier riffs, but it does feel like a bit of a downgrade. Unfortunately, the songwriting does also feel like it has regressed slightly. Having gone through this EP a number of times, there is not much to be said for memorability. 

To be fair to Post Mortal Possession, modern death metal never has (and sadly never will be) about how catchy something is. So in that regard, the band is successful in providing a near-30 minute disc of brutality, aggression, and riffs. As something to throw on and headbang to, “Forest of the Damned” gets the job done. It’s certainly not as derivative as some other bands in this style, but it also fails to grab me like a select number of bands have done. Regardless, if you like death metal, there are more than enough worthwhile riffs on this release to keep you occupied.

Be sure to check out and like Post Mortal Possession on Facebook!

Highlights
All/none

Final Rating
3.5/5 or 70%. 

Written by Scott

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