Review Summary: Don’t let the hotel-art album cover fool you, this might be the most electrifying death metal outing this year.
German death metal band Chapel of Disease are purveyors of the “hidden gem.” Like 2015’s
The Mysterious Ways if Repetitive Art, the band’s latest,
...And as We Have Seen the Storm, We Have Embraced is a quiet highlight in its respective year. Unlike the former, however, the latter deviates from the standard plug and chug format of modern death metal. Death growls and killer riffs are present, but Chapel of Disease have filled
...And as We Have Seen the Storm, We Have Embraced with an undeniable lightness. “Proggy” passages churn and roil with lush melodies and uplifting solos. “Void of Words,” for example, fills its last four minutes with an almost
Wish You Were Here style of meandering psychedelic guitar. In many ways, the Asphyx inclinations of their prior albums are almost jarring here. The bright tones clash with the cavernous death/doom of the vocals and occasional bouts of angry riffs. Now, for every instance of their 2015 track “Masquerade in Red,” Chapel of Disease provide an equal amount of Kvelertak’s “1985.”
Make no mistake, this isn’t “death n’ roll.” Instead, Chapel of Disease bring a sense of fun and liveliness to their solid death metal constant. Coupled with enough technical bravado to stay competitive,
...And as We Have Seen the Storm, We Have Embraced is a complete package. This is death metal for those who don’t like death metal—a crossover hit in the making.
