Unmerciful are a brutal death metal band hailing all the way from Topeka, Kansas that’s been active in the scene little over 20 years into their career and with the first album since 2016’s Ravenous Impulse, Wrath Encompassed is the next chapter from the band through Willowtip Records. If you love Origin, Suffocation, and Dying Fetus then I feel this album is perfect for you. From the songs containing decent amounts of atmosphere, solid instrumentals, and a polished production this album has Hate Eternal styled guitar melodies, Defeated Sanity like drumming patterns and vocals bringing a Cannibal Corpse meets Deeds Of Flesh style and not to mention the instrumentation work as said above is phenomenal which keeps the tracks, tempos and varied signatures to be diversified.
Secondary half of this release is where things become heavier, technical and just slams the listener straight back to hell with pure aggressiveness and heaviness. Unmerciful have also provided a interesting, slamming and sprinkled compositions that really reminded me a lot of Abysmal Torment for it’s heavily driven production value. Instrumentation wise, they’ve ultimately created massive destructive sequences that contributed a positive outcome to move progression elements and a stylistic barrier of intricate compositions have never sounded so fierce.
Perhaps the highest highlight of this album the magnificent passages continue to give variety and attractiveness for many factors. While vocal deliveries are quiet within the production mixing, the record doesn’t necessarily stray away within the album’s lyricism and offered more complexion and stylistic formulas making Wrath Encompassed a rather compressed release. Wrath Encompassed is another improvement in the Unmerciful discography which comprehends the intelligence, technicality, brutality and progression making the record shine for many years to come that not only promises to continue finishing touches of relentless headbanging material, but any fans of modern death metal will find something suitable at home.
Overall Score: 8.5/10
Review by Jake Butler
