If you mix Old School Death Metal with the more mainstream Black Metal and spice it up with a bit of Thrash you get VICTIMIZER. The mixture of the styles is a pleasant blueprint both on paper and reality. Triggered blastbeat drums topped with riffy guitar harmonies and a real Old School Death Metal voice. Yes, "Tales Of Loss And New Found Serenity" is a pleasant trip between the different worlds but it's not much more than that.

In the promo-sheet it's mentioned that VICTIMIZER were voted best band in the Nijmegen talent show and listening to this album that's no surprise. Even if the competition was a decade ago and the album does sound really good most things are done by the book. Chugga-chugga riffs, fast one string melody riffs and a slightly dis-harmonic twin guitar as the peak of creativity. The production is clear and modern, still with at least a bit of dynamism. Not as compressed and adjusted as many other bands today and that is a plus. Guitarists Richard Sastra and Andrew van der Schaft have created a really forceful effect with the twin guitars, the different parts creates depth in the music.

Describing what can be heard on "Tales Of Loss And New Found Serenity" sounds good too but after a few spins it doesn't feel interesting anymore. This is not a record that grows for every spin is way too adjusted and cleaned up for my taste. All kinds of brutal music should be a blow to the head played loud, most of the time triggered kicks sound more "pfft" than bombastic, and this album sure is one of those cases. It all lacks the umph! When everything is molded in the same shapes and nothing stands out it doesn't matter how perfect you play, after a few spins the record will leave the mind blank. So even if it's possible to check all boxes on what a cool band and record should contain, VICTIMIZER just ends up in the endless pile of similar bands.