Whether you’ve got the boring standard 32 teeth or have a couple of extra, if you like death metal it’s almost guaranteed that you’re going to enjoy the latest offering from HYPERDONTIA: Harvest Of Malevolence.
Over the past nine years, the Danish/Turkish titans have produced a cacophony of putrid savagery. Releasing their first EP, Abhorrence Veil, in 2017, the band followed up with the aptly-named debut Nexus Of Teeth a year later, which, despite being rough around the edges, launched them into the genre. Splits with MORTIFERUM and SEPTAGE, a second full-length and third EP have seen them bounce from strength to strength as they finesse their sound, and their most recent offering Deranged delivered 17 minutes of dense death metal excellence resulting in a boost in popularity.
Harvest Of Malevolence doesn’t transcend any boundaries nor does it push the band into new heights by obnoxiously experimenting or attempting to venture into new genre fusions. Instead, it’s a maturity of their sound. Retaining their brutal offering of gut-wrenching metal, it’s as if the band have taken a fine toothed comb to their earlier material, stripped it apart, polished it and honed it into the genius that flooded earlier cuts such as Grinding Teeth and Beast Within. The outcome? A meticulously crafted and masterfully produced record that is exceptionally fresh, and thankfully, still full of sonically ferocious carnage.
As with their previous work, HYPERDONTIA have managed to strike the perfect balance between heaviness and technicality. While being crammed full of tormenting riffing and intoxicating solos, the record isn’t overwhelmed by egotistical widdles or heavy for the hell of it barrages. Consequently, each element feels loaded with purpose and doesn’t overstay its welcome. The carefully crafted structure and refinement of tracks means they avoid long dribbling sections of nothingness and adds a sense of cleanliness. Yet not one drop of nastiness is split.
Even with the intensified speed, the pacing on Harvest Of Malevolence is fluid and graceful. Effortlessly slithering between tempos, the slower segments do not feel abrupt or unnatural against the violent blasts. Throughout the album, entwining between the piercing guitars, crushing drums and aggressive vocals is the bass. At no point does it simply exist. It tightly melds into the riffs, amalgamating into a single unit with the guitars, weaves a punchiness into the quieter moments and adds a captivating layer. The solo in Pestering Lamentation showcases this flawlessness, hitting your ears just right and etching into your brain.
HYPERDONTIA have proven that you don’t need gimmicks or flashy nuances to create a sublime album. This is a fine example of how present day death metal should be executed. It doesn’t try too hard to be relevant, bogging down with uninspiring appendages that don’t add any weight. Harvest Of Malevolence is not an album that you listen to once and throw away. It grows on you like poison ivy until you are absolutely engulfed, unable to stop listening to the unstoppable force. It’s arguably one of the best pieces of death metal released this year – don’t waste any time getting stuck into this.
Rating 8/10
Harvest Of Malevolence is out now via Dark Descent Records/Me Saco Un Ojo Records.
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