Peter Steele was a phenomenon. As an inhabitant of Brooklyn, New York he was responsible for a whole lot of impressive releases. Unfortunately he passed away in 2010, leaving quite a gap in the music scene. Founded in 2017 as a tribute to CARNIVORE, one of the original Peter Steele bands, these guys from the same part of town decided to honour the big man and his legacy through music, and chose the name CARNIVORE A.D. What makes it even better for them is that they have the backing of some of the members of the original band, giving them a free hand in continuing in the same vein as their peers. What you get is an amalgamation of what CARNIVORE and (the other Peter Steele band) TYPE O NEGATIVE used to do. And to be fair, they have been able to capture that atmosphere quite well.

As far as this new EP "Transmutation" goes, it is the debut release by this band, that has been touring around for all the time they have existed, only playing older stuff, thus perfecting their understanding of the material on hand. That has given them the right frame of mind to be able to write new music in the same vein, and I have to say that they have succeeded. You will hear music that is as slow and deliberate as TYPE O NEGATIVE used to be, but at the same time they have allowed themselves to speed up with the intentions and intensity that the original CARNIVORE used to have. It has made this CARNIVORE A.D. "Transmutation" EP into a voyage of discovery, whilst it also being an atmospheric step back in time too.

Please understand that although I feel that CARNIVORE A.D. have done everything right on "Transmutation", they are missing one key element, and that is the class and genius of the late and great Peter Steele. What I'm trying to say is that even though the band has been able to touch on what the big man's bands did in the past, they unfortunately haven't been able to write music that is just as unforgettable as the original bands were able to. That doesn't mean I'm not enjoying "Transmutation". I really am, as it makes me smile, but it also makes me want to get out the original albums and play them again. If that is what CARNIVORE A.D. set out to do, then they have achieved that feat with flying colours.