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Looks like I get to be the voice of reason here. Again. Lots of hype about this album, as apparently their debut got a lot of attention. I myself had never heard this band before, as a band name like that, and a rep for technical jerking off did not excite me. I generally despise Tech Death, and I regard bands like Spawn of Possession, Anata, and Immolation as misguided and lame, so I was not expecting to like this at all. But after careful listening, I have to side with the people who are proclaiming this album as godly. Okay, maybe not godly, but this is some powerfully good stuff.

Yes, this is technical, and the hyperblast speed-runs dominate the drums here, but at least the production evades the clickety-clickety trap a lot of this stuff falls into, so the drum work comes across as intense rather than annoying. The vocals are an expected growl, and are nothing special, but all that is just backup to the absolutely stunning guitars on this album. Aside from the expected herky-jerky rhythm work, the melodic riffs and the leads are nothing short of amazing. Decrepit Birth avoid the facelessness of most tech Death through tighter rhythmic structures and an audacious sense of melody. The backdrop is hammering, hairpin-turn technicality, but the leads and guitar melodies are pure old-school magic, and the catchy, hooky licks that bust out all over this thing are startling. Not only are the guitars played with speed and precision, but with genuine feel for dynamic, tension, and melodic reprisal.

So despite how much I hate their name, I have to admit this album rules with blistering speed and razor-sharp guitar melodies fueled by classic-metallic sensibility. I was all set to dismiss this album, but I can't. A deeply impressive work of musicianship and talent.