"Wither" is the name of the new album by the Swedish Progressive Death Metal band DESCEND. We always have the right to very good bands from the Scandinavian countries; it seems that the weather plays an important role in themes and styles that these musicians are trying to play. The group released in 2012 the first album "Through the Eyes of the Burdened", an album which was well received by the specialized media.

DESCEND's style is complex; it is from the first few minutes of this album that I found that I will be faced to a difficult musical deciphering session. Note by note and measure by measure, the members of this Swedish band don't leave anything to chance. Nothing escapes from an almost perfect mastery of the instruments. The complex musical sentences was assisted with an unpredictable arrangement, it's like entering a labyrinth and never find out the exit! Try to listen to "The Rancorous Paradigm" and you'll understand what I mean. Melodic passages and harmonies enrich all this, with a remarkable feeling on guitars.

Many acoustic parts are added several times to alternate the melancholic atmosphere with quiet passages. A surprise in the middle of the album is called "Wither", an acoustic interlude that brought down the curtain on another face of the group. I should mention that the influences of OPETH are very present, so if you still want to find albums like "Blackwater Park" or "My Arms, Your Hearse", it's really the right place. The album is realized with a very good production, all instruments are well highlighted as well as the clean and acoustic part for a perfect result.

I cannot imagine how this band can evaluate. I feel many influences of progressive and psychedelic in the air. I've diagrammed in my head the next albums; will we find the Death Metal side or the progressive personality in the future? That is the question.