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Immolation: Unholy cult

14/08/08 || The Duff

Immolation are seriously a band to be feared – on par with all the classic death metal bands in terms of consistency and contribution to the metal scene, they have the extra virtue of being to this day comparable to none but themselves and inimitable by all. After some very long waiting periods between the three most classic outputs of their discography, the band rapid-fire out “Unholy Cult” within a year of the monolithic “Cameltoes From a World Below” (hmmmmmmm). Maybe they should have taken a bit more time with the release of the follow-up to such a death metal milestone, but as far as I can tell, although not matching to the band’s past glories, “Unholy Cult” still comprises some outstanding Immolation material.

This is the same line-up as the preceding two classic albums (maybe even three; shoot me in the bollocks if you will, but I don’t have “Here In After”), all save Thomas Wilkinson (replaced by Bill Taylor) – as much as some may argue Vigna and Dolan to be the heart and soul of the band, it would be a shame to see Alex Hernandez leave their ranks, a drummer who seemed to be going from strength to strength on earlier efforts. On the last album, Immolation shied away from the catchy death metal of “Failures for Gods”, only to twist and turn even more unpredictably; on “Unholy Cult”, the material returns to the band’s catchier side, with simpler structuring and, unfortunately, certain parts that would indicate the band entered the studio with too little fresh material on par with the brilliance of their past legacy.

What is great about this disc is that it is eight tracks long, about the usual standard when it comes to Immolation greatness; whatever the outstanding quality they have to give you, they keep it to a minimum, no filler standard. The bad side to “Unholy Cult” is that, despite the strength of the first track, and even the sometimes overpowering majestic brilliance of tracks “Sinful Nature” and the title track, this album finishes far better than it begins largely due to the latter two tracks being the weakest off the album and the final two tracks being on par with the pretty much flawless opener, and therefore equal to anything from the immaculate “Failures for Gods” and “Close to a World Below”.

So overall, the musicianship is just as tight, maybe a little more refined, and returning to the catchier, less unpredictable style of “Failures for Gods”, but with some filler “sections” that don’t quite fit in with the grand scheme of things, indicative maybe of the band rushing through the album’s production, or simply going through a bad patch. I would still recommend this to people who enjoyed the band’s classic era, which isn’t the case with the two albums that succeeded it. “Unholy Cult” is possibly Immolation’s darkest piece of work (although I haven’t heard their latest), and with artwork from the very talented artist Svencho (vocalist from Aborted), you aren’t missing out on an essential piece of work in avoiding this, but it is much like having the earliest Maiden albums save “Piece of Mind”, “Somewhere in Time”… and “Fear of the Dark”.

7 hot, fiery crotches out of 10

Information
Released: 2002
Label: Listenable Records
Website: www.everlastingfire.com
Band
Ross Dolan: vocals, bass
Bill Taylor: guitars
Robert Vigna: guitars
Alex Hernandez: drums

Tracklist
01. Of Martyrs and Men
02. Sinful Nature
03. Unholy Cult
04. Wolf Among the Flock
05. Reluctant Messiah
06. A Kingdom Divided
07. Rival the Eminent
08. Bring them Down

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