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I find myself liking brutal death metal more and more, although it will never be my choice genre. But when the mood strikes, I can't argue. Of course it has to be fucking good, and as is common with its parent genre (good old death metal) the brutal branch of the death metal family tree is just as weighed down as the rest of the various death metal side dishes, with the proverbial branch almost snapping under the weight of its putrid, rotten flora. The death metal genre as a whole is oversaturated with shoddy second and third-rate bands, mindless clones, and of course the recent trend of deathcore and technical death metal which has been pissing off plenty of people.

That is what makes it so good to see a band like Fleshgod Apocalypse, who admittedly do have the crossover appeal to cater to both sides of the fence, largely due to their technicality and musical prowess (particularly as far as the drums go). I can see Oracles sitting well with all but the most hardcore, disgruntled old school death metal fan, you know the guy locked in his basement listening to Scream Bloody Gore building a time machine so he can go back in time and blow David Vincent. Time to move on I say, and while Fleshgod Apocalypse aren't the saviors of this stagnant genre they put out a first class show in ass-kicking that you just can't disagree with. Sure this is modern, technical, played at breakneck speeds but it's fucking good, and best of all punishing.

Fans of Nile, modern Behemoth, Hour of Penance, and even bands like Decrepit Birth are going to require several changes of underwear throughout the duration of Oracles not to mention a neck brace for afterwards. Fleshgod Apocalypse deftly avoid the pitfalls of their genre throughout the duration of the album, with varied songwriting adding much needed identity to each track, classical pieces dotted throughout for a well deserved breather, and of course a no bullshit approach to kicking your ass.

This album wipes the floor with pussy shit like Necrophagist and is one of the finest examples of how to play technical death metal outside of the Death/Atheist/Cynic mould. Sure they proudly display their musical talents throughout the album with plenty of sweep-picked guitar parts to keep the technical fans creaming in their jeans, however they never overbear with this shit like a million and one faceless technical death metal bands. They know when to kick your ass and they pretty much do that from start to finish, for fans of the genre this is essential. In fact the only people who won't find enjoyment here are those who don't like death metal and those who have an aversion to anything modern.