Produced by Joe Cincotta
Released: July 3
Since reconvening five years ago, Suffocation have weathered a storm of criticism from fans who have regarded their new style with some disappointment. For everyone merely glad to have them back, there's someone who finds their latest work unsatisfying and lacking the spark the elevated their earlier releases to the status of legendary. It's a very rare band that can maintain a level of consistency and brilliance throughout a career, and Suffocation is not one of those bands. Blood Oath is sure to polarise their fans just as much as Souls to Deny and Suffocation: if you loved those, you'll most likely enjoy this. If you didn't, you probably won't.
The thing that has marked Suffocation's current phase from their early period is the speed of the playing, and Blood Oath continues the slow-to-mid paced chug they've been doing since the reformation. The crushing, cascading slab-like riffs of the title track had me thinking at first that I was listening to a new Morbid Angel album and it was only Frank Mullens' vocals that let me know that, yes, this is indeed Suffocation. There's no question about the brutality of these tracks as the band grind along with murderous intent. Mullens' growl is low and sinister and his phrasing is typically clear and Terence Hobbs hits the mark with some no-nonsense soloing and surprisingly melodic moments, but there just aren't any clear highlights. It starts out OK but by about halfway through has just become little more than a background rumble with a snatch of a melody here or a chord progression there to keep you from forgetting all about it. Even at just on 41 minutes, Blood Oath seems too long as the sludgey pace and downright generic songwriting just makes it drag on and on.
Suffocation's reputation was built on a combination of innovation, technicality and sheer heaviness. As far as Blood Oath is concerned, one out of three simply isn't good enough. Their style has been aped, perfected and expanded by so many bands in the last twenty years that for them to stay ahead, Suffocation themselves need to do it better. Right now, that's just not happening.
- Blood Oath
- Dismal Dream
- Pray for Forgiveness
- Images of Purgatory
- Cataclysmic Purification
- Mental Hemorrhage
- Come Hell or High Priest
- Undeserving
- Provoking the Disturbed
- Marital Decimation
Rating: 68%
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