If you all know me very well and how much of a big fan I am of Aborted and their music, you’ll know exactly why I have such respect, total support and always loving every album they’ve ever done. Aborted are one of my top ten favorite bands of all time and I will never forget being a mid teenager hearing The Chondrin Enigma back on MTV’s Headbangers Ball when I got exposed to the music and band and rest assure I have never heard such chaotic, frantic, grindy and pulsing hybrids of death metal, deathgrind and even some signatures of grindcore, I was on the edge of my seat and stuck with me ever since. Seeing this band grow in such a long time in their existence, these Belgian based outfitters made incredible full-lengths that are still on my workout playlist this very day with records such as Global Flatline, Goremageddon: The Saw And The Carnage Done to even the last offering of 2018’s Terrorvision which was one of the best produced, heaviness and monstrosity albums they’ve done in the modern-day era of the band.
Now in 2021, we have a new album in the band’s long-running embodiment of work with Maniacult which is the band’s eleventh offering and is released through Century Media Records. Musically, Aborted uses three various sub-genres consists of grindcore, deathgrind and reminiscent melodic death metal Carcass-esque Heartwork era in the same vein which these subjective categories are easy equations into their natural song arrangements does not certainly make their song titles generic. Intelligently placed thrash picking guitar licks, visceral vocals and upfront drumming double bass techniques, these also set proper breakdowns and magnificently crafted infectious melodicism. Maniacult however, consists of 11 songs and 40 minutes sets right amount of sonic qualifying standout ovation melodies and brutality with decapitating attacks of overwhelming blankets fusing jackhammer insistence and a chainsaw Cryptopsy blistering lightning blast beats and stronger build ups such as the title track Maniacult, Drag Me To Hell which is also special featured by Filip Danielsson of Humanity’s Last Breath, Ceremonial Ineptitude, Portal to Vacuity and Ben Duerr from Connecticut’s Shadow Of Intent which is my favorite track on the album being I Prediletti: The Folly of the Gods, features searing guitar noises, dueling vocal delivery and precise instruments.
Now periodically speaking, Maniacult also deliberately contains a slower, in control and groove oriented ventures with plodding tempos and pinch harmonies of the song Grotesque sounding very unsettling and amazing. It verges into organic formula previously of chaotic deathgrind madness and deeply complexed stomach churning goregrind squeal assaults which pummeling the executed lead changes into thunderous firings. This album by Aborted contains heaviness, phenomenal production and everlasting distributions which that case Aborted studied very hard on past releases containing more a death metal approach which suits their style uniquely well. Maniacult is a well calculated, designed, magnificently crafted and most produced sounding albums Aborted has ever done to date and definitely showcases the maturity of how far they’ve came as a band and proved themselves to keep pushing further and further.
Overall Score: 10/10
Review by Jake Butler
