Immolation is a veteran juggernaut in Death Metal circles, and have been releasing records for over thirty years. For this level of longevity alone, they deserve heaps of praise. Admittedly, Immolation is one of those bands that should be in this reviewer’s arsenal, being deeply entrenched in the genre, but is largely overlooked. Acts of God is their eleventh studio record, following 2017’s critically acclaimed Atonement.
The album interlude “Abandoned” is a blackened lo-fi with enough uneasiness and building anticipation, thereby serving its purpose, before thrusting us headfirst into the title track “An Act of God”. “An Act of God” is all you need to know about Immolation’s take on death metal in four minutes; an aggressive blast laden main/chorus riff, leading into a lumbering verse riff, with black/doom overtones. Founding member, guitarist, and member synonymous with Immolation Robert Vigna is not without his cheeky flourishes. A well-placed pinch harmonic at the tail of a standard death metal tremolo-picked riff here, and a diminished chord there never fails to color your usual death metal fare and elevate Immolation to the heights it boasts now. But is that nearly enough to make Acts of God a memorable record?
My major gripe with Acts of God in particular echoes my qualms with standard death metal, coming from the vantage of a modern tech-death consumer, as well as an ardent supporter of the much-maligned (but rapidly expanding) -core subgenres, is that much of the tracks lack the “hook”. While many of the tracks on the record are enjoyable and I found myself tapping my feet and bobbing my head to the beat/riff at hand, there was no lasting impression left on my listening experience. This is probably more commentary on prevalent complaints of reducing attention span, but a lack of “Holy Sh*t!” moments on standard death metal albums like this are few (if any) and far between.
There are moments on “Shed the Light”, “Incineration Procession” and album closer “Apostle” which led me to stand up and take note of the track to make a special motion, but most of the record gets lost in a lumbering mess of interchangeable mid-tempo tremolo-picked riffs interspersed with your sped-up blast beaten tremolo-picked parts. Immolation’s brand of spice is octave chords which is enjoyable the first few times, but after eleven records, becomes a tired trope at best. Admittedly, Immolation (like many other death metal bands) write several fun intro riffs (which often double up as choruses), and the balls-to-the-wall ones featured on tracks like “Overtures of the Wicked”, or the evil vibe of “Broken Prey” come out swinging. However, the lack of memorable verse riffs when deconstructed into simpler arrangements to accommodate vocals is where it all comes apart at the seams. Another major contributor to death metal with diminishing returns is the lack of variety in the vocals. Vocalist (bassist, and founding member) Ross Dolan is a prominent vocalist in the death metal space, but his vocals are so monotone and stereotypical, they are soporific. A severe drought of any diversity in register, cadence, timbre, or arrangement, when coupled with the lumbering nature of lackluster death metal verse riffs, is a significant reason that the tracks on Acts of God bleed together into a sludge of mediocrity. There is something to be said about the downgrade of vocal diversity due to the double-duties pulled by these vocals along with either bass or guitars, but this is just rationalization.
Acts of God is a record best consumed piecemeal to avoid fatigue. I enjoyed parts of the record. There are fun riffs, interesting overdubs, and spicy Vigna inclusions, but taken together, I cannot recall a single riff on the record after many… many listens!
The production of Acts of God is a great example of “if it ain’t broke…”. The overall sound of the guitars is clear without compromising the old-school “raw” aesthetic. The leads cut through the mix, the bass rumbles along, and the vocals sit atop the entire affair in classic fashion. The drums are where complaints begin to creep in. The bass drums are muffled, and the snares are prominent enough to be jarring during blast beats. The cymbals are also choked and lifeless, specifically in the busier arrangements, and don’t give the impressive writing its due.
Major props as always to the album art courtesy of Eliran Kantor who could easily be the album cover ambassador for extreme metal going forward.
Acts of God is a competent slab of Immolation’s brand of blackened doomy death metal. While much praise can be levied on a robust legacy, this record quickly suffers from a lack of earworms and return appeal. An enjoyable ride, but easily forgotten.
