Of Entropy and Life Denial

by Merrimack

Overview

There is a subset of black metal, almost always European in origin, that at its most complex and technically proficient is a completely logical progression from (at best) Larks' Tongues in Aspic-era King Crimson and (at worst) Tarkus-era Emerson, Lake & Palmer. Such is the case with the second album by the French death metal band Merrimack. (What the band found evocatively doomy about the name of a picturesque small town in New Hampshire known for its liberal arts college has apparently been lost in translation.) Perhaps influenced by the French prog rock bands of the 1970s and '80s (Magma, etc.) known for their blend of hardcore-style speed and dazzling chops, Of Entropy and Life Denial is an epic onslaught of tricky time signatures, complex guitar riffage, and whiplash rhythms. The technique is flawless, but there's evident passion in the playing that keeps it from being merely showoffy. The drawback for old-school prog rockers will be the doomy vocal style (which invariably sounds comical to anyone who isn't already a death metal fan) and lyrics and song titles that make ELP sound like the Ramones. Otherwise, this is a solid example of the more technically minded end of modern metal. ~ Stewart Mason

Product Details

Release Date:	07/14/2023
Label:	Dead / Moribund Records
UPC:	0768586007720
Rank:	107034

Tracks

1. ... (Of Ashes and Purification)
2. Seraphic Conspiracy (Of the Angels and Their Mission)
3. Melancholia Balneam Diaboli (Of Acedia and Her Daughters)
4. Redeem Restless Souls (Of Asmodai and His Takeover)
5. Insemination (Of Procreation and Its Consequences)
6. The Birth of a Lifes Sacerdoce (Of Nascency and Intluctability)
7. Descension from Life (Of Spiritual Discipline and Metaphysical Gravity)
8. Subcutaneous Infection (Of Flesh and Its Decay)
9. Consecration of the Temple (Of the World and Its Impalement)
10. Carnaceral (Of Disease and Decease)
11. Adiabatic Bonds of Consanguinity (Of Entropy and Life Denial)

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Merrimack   Primary Artist