Friday 18 March 2016

Album Review: Time To Bleed "Die With Dignity" reviewed by Dave Wolff

Band: Time To Bleed
Album: Die With Dignity
Genre: Death metal
Location: Braunschweig, Germany
Label: Kernkraftritter Records
Released: January 8, 2016
Cover art by: Lowenart (http://www.facebook.com/loewenart)
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/timetobleedmetal
Do Me A Favor And Kill Me (Facebook): http://www.facebook.com/DOMEAFAVORANDKILLME
Do Me A Favor And Kill Me (Youtube): http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCONuNEpKSCZDvTNooqsI2EQ
Reviewed by: Dave Wolff

This is not to say you should tell a book by its cover, but brutal death metal albums usually have descriptive covers promising music to encourage the savage beast. When checking out Time To Bleed, you can be sure to experience that. The cover artwork adorning Die With Dignity (designed by Lowenart) is like a madman’s depiction of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (the 1974 theatrical release), complete with a deranged killer, victims, blood, entrails and a secluded place far from the safety of civilization. More album artwork can be viewed at Lowenart’s Facebook community page linked above. The band formed in 2009, released a demo (Theory Of Cremation) in 2010 and released an EP (Necroscience) in 2013 prior to releasing Die With Dignity this past January. As they are from the country that gave us groundbreaking bands like Destruction, Sodom and Kreator, Time To Bleed have a profound tradition to uphold. All things considered, Die With Dignity is a worthy successor to the ancient champions of German thrash metal. You don’t get overdone blast here, and you get more than enough heaviness, precision, guttural vocals and double bass. Also elements of Death, Hypocrisy and Grave; all worthwhile bands who have influenced many in death metal. With frenetic, dissonant guitars, an appropriate amount of atmosphere to enhance certain songs and no groove or nu metal, the album is firmly entrenched in death metal’s 90s roots. I like how the first song Soil Their Bodies starts abruptly, indicating a drive to get things underway immediately. The next track, the title track, begins with a sample but it’s unclear where it’s from. I was thinking it could have been a movie about Jim Jones but don’t quote me. I would have liked to know the source of this sample but this is information I didn’t have access to. Impaled is one of the faster, more manic tracks and one of my personal favorites. Besides being one of the songs that display blast percussion, it shows the guitarists working hard on their riff playing. From Darkness To Death contains lots of crunching and some dissonant notes that slightly reminded me of old Burzum. Self Created Gods sees more crunching as well as Slayer-ish rhythms. I’d have liked to read the lyrics as the song’s suggested subject matter is the practice of using scripture for one’s own ends. Messenger Of Death has still more crunch, shades of Hypocrisy in the harmonies and riffs that speak of some classical influence. Devastation hearkens to 90s DM with more hints of Hypocrisy. Violated is another favorite, with more blast and involved songwriting. The Surgeon closes the album with inventive lead harmonies and an intensity that managed to last from the beginning.

Track list:
1. Soil Their Bodies
2. Die with Dignity
3. Impaled
4. From Darkness to Death
5. Self Created Gods
6. Messenger of Death
7. Devastation
8. Violated
9. The Surgeon

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