Produced by Roman KoesterReleased: September 2010
It's hard to imagine a band that's been through more in the last few years than The Red Shore. Yet if ever there has been an example of getting stronger through tragedy and turmoil, then this band is it, and here is proof. If extreme metal is any kind of catharsis, The Avarice of Man is the ultimate therapy for the pain some of these guys have suffered.
This band is virtually unrecognisable as the group that unleashed "Salvaging What's Left" and even Unconsecrated. With Chase Butler taking over the vocal reins from the tormented Jamie Hope, all remnants of their deathcore past have been finally stripped away and in its place is a fearsome, brutal and ugly technical death metal monster which now edges close to some kind of unrelenting cross between Morbid Angel and Decapitated. The mix (courtesy of Jacob from Textures) evokes a horrible sense of unease as, quite apart from many of their contemporaries, The Red Shore has gone for a distinctly murky sound on The Avarice of Man. It might take a couple of listens for some ears to penetrate the sludgy guitars and Butler's concrete larynx, but when they do they will discover a crushing album with some inventive tech-death riffs and occasional Morbid Angel-like moments where the guitars are like slabs rising from some rank and primordial ooze. Butler's cerebral lyrics might be lost through his dense, somewhat monotonous growl but the claustrophobic atmosphere is perfect for the apocalyptic concept of humanity's violent destruction that is weaved throughout.
True hooks are few and far between, as this is not an album that sweeps you along with catchy groove after groove. Instead, it is a raging torrent of blast beats and ever-changing technical riffs, broken up now and again by old-school Suffocation-style breakdowns that have taken the place of the hardcore slam sections from earlier work. "The Approaching Tempest" is appropriately named, exploding with a hailstorm of ferocity that leads to the twisted complexity and savagery of the title track. Indeed, the five tracks preceding the grinding interlude "The Union" are tableaux of epic death metal violence that are second to none. The others are nothing to be sneezed at either because with The Avarice of Man, The Red Shore has delivered a masterful slab of extreme technical brutality that stands alongside the best on the world stage.
1. Creation
2. The Seed of Annihilation
3. Human, All too Human
4.The Approaching Tempest
5. The Avarice of Man
6. Of First and Last Things
7. Armies of Damnation
8. Inflict De-creation
9. The Union
10. And It’s Own
11. Awakening
12. Reduced to Ruin
13. The Relapse of Humanity
Rating: 95%
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