Revocation is a band I’ve been following very heavily since their 2011 record Chaos Of Forms was released and have pretty much been a fan ever since. Their style of extreme music combining elements of thrash, technical death and traditional death metal is sensational as I feel that this new album Netherheaven marks a brand new chapter into the band’s catalog and I can immediately right off the bat can say that this is without question the band’s heaviest, darkest and polished record’s they’ve done in a very longtime. It’s been four long years since we last heard anything from this Massachusetts based outfitters Revocation and when they dropped the 2018 album of The Outer Ones I told myself that record in particular was the band’s most straightforward, accessible and catchy driven records they’ve done and while I still stand by that, Netherheaven is a much more refined, claustrophobic and structured album that sets the bar skyhigh. Musically and sonically speaking, this album went into a much more death metal approach but still maintaining the thrash metal esque melodies and a technical display so perfectly well done that the members of Revocation have outdone themselves into making Netherheaven such a blisteringly heavy and unsettling album making each track become huge standouts.
What makes Netherheaven Revocation’s finest album is it demonstrates a stronger core fanbase with elemental twists on technical death metal while incorporating jazz fusions and thrash. They’ve also combined capabilities, precision and loose flairs setting them apart so uniquely. Their technical death edge firmly sits naturally as they intentionally grow as musical prodigies. Even on tracks such as Galleries of Morbid Artistry, Nihilistic Violence, The Intervening Abyss of Untold Aeons and my opinion the best song off this album being Re-Crucified have more thoughtful quality, organic scorched atmosphere and melody with everlasting classic metal vibe of the structured guitars, bass, drums and vocal deliveries is the strongest highlight on the entire album. Not to say vocalist and founder of Revocation David Davidson continues to show his thrashy styled vocals while balancing out the technical death metal signatures he’s known doing.
Some tracks are slightly straightforwardly outing resulting the importance of no radio friendly singing after hearing this album front to back and this ultitizes a retrospective introspection of fantastic production which overall interwoven the qualities of thrash, technical death and jazzy vibes mixes the provisions Deathless contains. Influenced by Megadeth, Metallica, Dark Angel, Exodus and Steve Vai, the members of Revocation created borderline essential heaviness and brutality of opening passages of background intelligence of thrash riffing , punishing drum beats, bouncy grooves and diabolical singing energy. Their entire sections alone focuses natural compositions and components immerses machine gun rapid assaults and growth this band should applaud themselves for making Netherheaven Revocation’s well crafted albums they’ve ever created. This is definitely ending up in my favorite albums of 2022 list and I strongly recommend you go listen to this record.
Overall score 9.5/10
Review by Jake Butler
