I say this every time I review Death Metal band. "If they're awesome, they're probably Polish; if they're Polish, they're probably awesome". Such is AGAIN (how terribly predictable) the case with INCARNATED; death metal veterans of two decades, who are not nearly as well-known as they should be. 2014 sees the release of a new album, "Try Before Die".

"Zombieland" sets a post-apocalyptic scene; a chilling, ER-room introduction is cut short by a relentless, Thrash-Death onslaught. The riffs are akin to VADER and SINISTER, embellished with a delectable production and mastering. This is modern Death metal of a high calibre, that unmistakably can be traced to old-school roots.  The vocals are ferocious, voracious and strangled, and darken the already-bleak soundscape. "Full of Victims" is a track most frantic in its arrangement; a slap-dash assortment of perfectly-executed riffs, accentuated by blast-beats.. In fact, every track on this record is accentuated to the absolute fullest by A LOT of blast-beats. A good example of the album's tendency to take Thrashy turns, the aggressiveness is truly a sound to behold.

"Grave is Where your Heart is", a title most quaint. One of the faster tracks on the album, the intro expresses a notable higher tempo; a tsunami of riffs that paves the way for the destruction that is to follow. The band's glorious onslaught of death is punctuated by chugging drops in tempo down to (for the time being) earthshaking grooves. "Madness" perhaps trumps "Grave" in speed, with nearly 6 minutes of hyper-aggressive, drum-focussed metal; a true turbine powering the band's engine of death. Easily one of my favorite tracks, it ends the album on a euphoric note; minds shattered and bones snapped.

2014 is a remarkable year for new releases within the more extreme spectrums of metal; INCARNATED truly up there with the likes of SINISTER and VADER.