The evolution of subgenres of any Metal main genre is something unexpected for those who are living the surge of it, but in a historical perspective, things gain sense. For many fans of POSSESSED of the days the quartet released “Seven Churches” (1985) is extremely hard to deal with full-lengths as MORBID ANGEL’s “Covenant”, SUFFOCATION’s “Effigy of the Forgotten” and even CANNIBAL CORPSE’s “Tomb of the Mutilated” (and many others, but let’s stay only with these three to evade boring lists), because such evolutions of Death Metal were far from what impressed them due the improvements on the musical violence and extreme approach. And as heir of such brutality here is the UK-based quartet INIQUITOUS SAVAGERY with “Edifice of Vicissitudes”.

After 8 years since their first full-length (“Subversions of the Psyche”, released back on 2015), the band shows a mature and aggressive form of Brutal Death Metal with many technical parts, and with clear influences of early ages of North American acts as SUFFOCATION and CANNIBAL CORPSE (this one especially on the days of Chris Barnes on the vocals). The band shows a good work, but they need to sharpen their efforts to become more personal, what means they have potential to do such thing. It’s good, but they can do better than is shown. On the sonority, the works of D.P. Johnson and Euan Harrison on the recordings and Colin Marston (mixing and mastering) earned the band a defined and understandable sonority (what is very good, once many Brutal Death Metal acts have a wrong idea about sound quality), with all instruments clear (and the choice for instrumental tunes is really great, different from the usual, once they’re more into a Death Metal way, not a Brutal Death Metal way) and the vocals defined (what makes things better on the understanding of the guttural growls). And the artwork of Giannis Nakos for the album’s cover is really amazing, showing the Death Metal DNA of the quartet’s music.

Now, pay attention: to say that they can do better isn’t to say that songs as “Casualty of Diabolical Trial” (the vocals growls into a Chris Barnes’ vein are very good, fitting in the instrumental lines and on the rhythmic shifts), “Synaptic Cull” (this one has many elements of North American Death Metal, as the technical bass playing), “Choked Before First Breath”, “Omnipotence Negates Self-Affliction” (a ‘punches-and-kicks-to-every-side’ storm with manic guitar riffs and arrangements), “Narcotic Exsanguination”, “Lifeblood”, “Drenched in Righteous Offal” (very good rhythmic changes, indeed) and “Bio-Digital Convergence in the Fourth Industrial Age” have nothing to offer. The quartet is really good, but they can do better than that due their unusual insight on Brutal Death Metal (they have a very good dose of classic Death Metal traits that could be expanded in the future).

For now, INIQUITOUS SAVAGERY shows a huge potential, and it’s a matter of making it into music. But “Edifice of Vicissitudes” is a fun album and will have appeal to extreme Metal fans for sure.