Despite having only released a demo in 2011, RAGING AGE has just stormed out of the gate with their debut record on WormHoleDeath Records. This Italian four piece plays a rather interesting form of Melodic Death Metal that I feel has the capacity to turn some heads in the near future.

The Stockholm influenced guitar tone immediately stood out on early tracks such as "Regions of Sorrow" and I particularly think that Death Metal fans will appreciate the ability to achieve such a tone without the use of the (now overused) HM2 pedal. This particular track also displays the kind of unique time signatures that showcase drummer Erik's performance that truly steals the spotlight at many moments on this record. The carefully placed and well executed drum break on "Hail Horrors" is something that demonstrates the technically sound playing and interesting drum writing on most of the record and I think will capture most listener's attention.

Though I applaud the dense production that truly thickens up the sound on the record (listen to "The Slaughter" or "Hail Horrors" for example), the drums are at times a bit loud on the mix, an unfortunate characteristic of many Metal albums but one that thankfully doesn't take away too much from the overall dynamic. Equally impressive is the lead guitar work which on "Noch Ein Mal" showcases the band's appreciation for melodies without compromising heaviness. The infectious groove of the verse riff in "Exhaling the End" makes that particular track my highlight on the album and is reminiscent of DECAPITATED in many ways with its technical crunch, evil mid section, and heavy break and the end. "Lay Yourself", the ninth track on the record, foreshadows in many ways the band's future with its progressive elements akin to "Individual Thought Patterns" style DEATH, something that I find very appealing as will many others. The proficiency of the members' playing surely will allow them to achieve such progression if they opt for it, which I think they ought to.

One aspect that I hope to see improvement on in the band's sound is vocal diversity. The low howls of Fil's vocal delivery are a warm reminder of classic Death Metal and in many ways a nice departure from the high pitched screams of so many Melodic Death Metal bands, but the lack of variation doesn't sit well with the band's approach to technically sound music.

While this debut album is in many ways a success for RAGING AGE, the songwriting doesn't display anything exceptionally well enough to warrant a gold status. These songs are good but they in no way reach out and punch the listener in the throat and demand attentiveness. RAGING AGE's debut, like most debuts, emphasizes showcasing the individual traits of its separate elements. While it achieves this end quite well, it will be up to future releases to cohesively meld together those individual elements to make for an improved overall body of work.