Band:	Horrendous
Album:	Anareta
Style:	Death metal
Release date:	October 27, 2015
A review by:	Windrider

01. The Nihilist
02. Ozymandias
03. Siderea
04. Polaris
05. Acolytes
06. Sum Of All Failures
07. Stillborn Gods
08. The Solipsist (Mirrors Gaze)

Horrendous are a busy band. It was just last year when they surprised us with their second album Ecdysis, which caused quite some impact on the death metal scene and I still keep it in mind as my favorite album of 2014. Now a year has passed, and out of nothing, the US-Americans announced that their third album is set for a release date before the end of 2015. Anareta is its name and we shall see if it can hold up to its predecessor.

First of all, this one is different. Anareta relates to Ecdysis like a charming and nice girlfriend to a crazy ass one. Note that this is not necessarily bad if you're a full-grown death metal guy. However, what you might be missing is something lovely and a straight line to follow. Your new significant other is one of those GPS navigation systems that wants you to do U-turns on the highway. Now, as I'm running out of comparisons you might have guessed the point already. But let's spell it out again in terms of music.

Anareta is a very difficult album to listen to at first, probably one of the most uneasy listening ones that turn out to be actually great. The foundation is again rooted in classical death metal, but this time with more rapid tempo change breaks through the sound. In this genre, however, this stands for a natural flow of melodies and it seems that Horrendous had quite some fun with songwriting. The chaotic approach also fits the performance of all the members, especially the vocals which always had an anarchic twist. On the guitar side, a massive load of melodies of all scales and tempos await the listener like a roller coaster ride and leave him with the feeling that there are still bands keeping the original idea of death metal vivid.

For me personally, and this needs to be mentioned here, there is a huge plus coming from the bass. It is still a sad reality that in metal as a whole, the bass is mostly playing a subordinate role (compared to jazz or blues). Of course there are some exceptions, especially in technical metal styles. But did you ever had the joy of watching a Nile bassist during a live concert and were wondering where all that inhuman playing results in, when you can hardly hear a note of that many that are played? For us members of the bassist guild, this can be quite frustrating. Horrendous are one of the good guys that give enough space to the bass, both in songwriting and production. The result is terrific and shows how much more depth and diversity it can add to the music.

The comparison of Anareta to its predecessor Ecdysis should be clear by now; a progression going deeper to the roots of death metal, which pleases fans of genre. Others might be irritated so it's a hit-or-miss situation for them, but who cares?

"The rest are merely humanity. One must make oneself superior to humanity, in power, in loftiness of soul, in contempt." ? and in death metalness, to add this modern detail to Nietzsche. Horrendous are once again a hot candidate for the album of the year.