Formed back in the year 2005 and hailing from Aschaffenburg, Germany, is BETRAYAL, a Melodic Death Metal band. They released  "Of Lust and Loss", a 6-song album in the year 2007, which was followed up by a 2-track demo in the year 2015. The band went through several changes and they went on a long hiatus before resurfacing in the year 2015 with a demo, which was the seed for the sound for the album, "Infinite Circles". The band counts Metal bands like DEATH, MASTADON, AT THE GATES and BEHEMOTH as their primary influences. The band has a string of shows lined up in the early part of next year in their native Germany.

"Prologue" is a less than a minute long instrumental that starts out with the sounds of thunder, rain, and distant church bells. It left me wondering why it was put there in the first place? Perhaps the calm before the storm? Which turned out be, "The Shell", and it begins with furious double bass action and twin guitar attack complimented by growling vocals. The vocals shift from deep rumblings to guttural shrieks, and the track has an incredible lead guitar bit in the middle, which I thought was just perfect for the mood of the song. The last 1-minute of the song has an acoustic ending, which was a surprising twist to a brutal song. And then a saxophone sound purrs its way into the song and it almost sounds like a pop song from the 80's!

"Infinite Crisis", the title track, debuts with the familiar twin guitar sounds and is a song about rebellion and forsaking a deity. As with the previous track, the vocals tend to shift between two sounds, and it is slightly on the slower side. The song has a very catchy riff and tends to speed up and slow down, almost at will. Some parts of the track remind me of the way MASTADON goes about their business in making heavy sounds.

"Fighting Perdition", a track just over 4 minutes in length, has a healthy infusion of Groove/Thrash Metal sounds to it. A violent song about war and death, the song has varied time signatures that add an extra layer to its complexity.

"Watershed" is a less than 2-minute instrumental track that is as eerie as it is inexplicable, and which leads to "Flagellation Of The Mind", a depressing track about being locked up in a prison. The chorus is especially brutal and the second half of the song has a stirring lead guitar solo, accompanied by crunching riffs. The influence of one of the most revered bands in the Death Metal genre, DEATH, is quite evident in this track.

"Order Of Chaos" is the last track on the album, and almost has a Prog Metal beginning to it. It's a track about an ancient power that awakens after a long slumber and decides to take over the rein of things. In its midst, a clean guitar sound with background drumming and spoken words, which was a bit of a revelation. Promptly, once that passage is done with, the song swiftly goes on a fast paced tempo, much in the vein of a Black Metal song.

I must admit that the production value on the album, as a whole. is exemplary. The band themselves, are skilled and have a good sense of balance. The album is more varied than anything I have heard, with odd timings and unconventional instruments. The band has put up its music online to be streamed by fans of this genre of music. The album is unquestionably technical, and the songs are clever. This album has enough to delight fans of Groove, Thrash, and Death Metal, and is sure to win over many more fans with its music. Give it a listen and you won't come away disappointed. It's a strong album, and I think the band has a bright future ahead.<