Band:	Days Of Betrayal
Album:	Decapitated For Research
Style:	Deathcore
Release date:	September 19, 2008
A review by:	Thryce

01. Duskfall
02. Decapitated For Research
03. Murder Ballads
04. Hanging By A Thread
05. Execute Hope
06. Narcotised
07. Within Melancholic Rapture
08. The Blacker Silence
09. Within These Flesh Made Walls
10. The Next Victim

Metalcore. When you think about it long enough, metalcore is actually a very amusing word, yet it is at the same time quite an interesting genre too. While some (if not most) people around here are already crawling up the curtains when they only see the word metalcore, some (if not only a few) can really appreciate the genre in all its compelling glory. But don't worry; today I won't be talking about metalcore, though, at least not entirely. And I won't be talking about classic death metal either. The thing is, Days Of Betrayal do not exactly play pure metalcore nor plain death metal, in any way not a clear form of both genres, the one being more notorious than the other. "Decapitated For Research" is actually an interesting and fresh fusion of both.

But let's start from the beginning. Days Of Betrayal are a five-piece Belgian outfit, formed roughly four years ago. After recording a well-received EP last year, the band is now releasing their first full-length, entitled "Decapitated For Research". The first thing that immediately catches the eye (well, not immediately, after a weak and redundant intro will probably be more correct) is the massive will of the band to kick some serious ass on this record. Indeed, from the very beginning till the very end you get brutally drawn into the band's grasping cyclone of super fast and destructive tunes, and they're not letting you go that easily. In short, "Decapitated For Research" is non-stop full-blown aggression (well, almost, there is also a weak and unwanted interlude that doesn't make any sense in the whole "brutal" image the band was setting up). The power behind this format is to be found in the straightforward hardcore and metalcore basic influences. Furious metalcore is undeniably the core and the soul of "Decapitated For Research", but the wrap-up is more ferocious, more extreme, yes, more metal.

Furious metalcore or not, Days Of Betrayal have put together one hell of an album. Really, the more I'm listening to "Decapitated For Research", the more I'm starting to really like this in your face type of record. Apart from the sharp, yet melodious guitar tunes, the brute two-leveled vocals and the savage drumming, the thing I appreciate the most about this band is they're not another bland, metalcore-extracted metal band. I'm not saying Days Of Betrayal are pioneering the genre here, but they're far from being annoyingly prototypical either, rather the opposite, their obstinate way of playing extreme metal and metalcore works quite enthralling for a change. So when I say Days Of Betrayal have a lot to offer on this album, you can fully trust me on it.