Band:	Evocation
Album:	Apocalyptic
Style:	Death metal
Release date:	October 29, 2010
Guest review by:	Windrider

01. Sweet Obsession
02. We Are Unified Insane
03. Infamy
04. Parasites
05. Reunion In War
06. Psychosis Warfare
07. Murder In Passion
08. It Is All Your Fault
09. Curse On The Creature
10. Apocalyptic

May people pardon that I cannot tell much from the band's past yet, since this is my first try with them, but it looks like their other albums will also follow into my collection. I was searching for some new stuff in the local store and the cover of this made me look closer at it. Apocalyptic by Evocation, promising names. So good so far, I can now say it is one of the blind purchases that I will never regret.

The album consists of 10 songs clocking around 40 minutes. And all the songs sound quite the same when you first listen to it. But the more one gets into it, the more details he hears and the more aspects of brilliance he notices. Evocation play classical death metal, but they manage to compare it with a very melodic riffing that goes through the mostly tremolo picked songs. Where other techniques on the guitar are used, the whole music turns around and becomes totally rhythm based. Concerning the instruments, the bass is mostly in line with the guitars, solid. Both guitars are good and especially the solos are extremely enjoyable. Overall it is not very technical, and it is a pleasure nowadays in death metal if you do not have to deal with posers showing their skills but authentic and grim death metal musicians. The drums on Apocalyptic are a bit more experimental and the drummer kicks ass, the best band mate after the lead guitarist. The vocalist is cool. This is the best word to describe the work of Thomas "Tjompe" Josefsson. He really has passion in his voice, but on the other hand he could have sung it all more variously.

Evocation have not reinvented the wheel but the overall sound of the songs is fresher than what you get to know by the most other death metal bands around there. They managed to get a dark essence into their sound as well, which is awesome in combination with the mostly higher sung vocals. Really an in-your-face attitude with melodies in the background, an aggressive and very gloomy touch. It is hard to name songs out of the whole record, because they all are killers in their own way. But songs that describe it very well are "Parasite" and "Psychosis Warfare." At this point, I should mention the lyrics, which are also nothing new, but quite decent and enjoyable. There are not words like "corruption" or "devastation" that happen to be sung a dozen times in each song.

What I wish to make it perfect next time is a bit more variety in the songwriting. Here and there some breakdowns, decent bridges with melodic leads and more than a handful of notes sung by the vocalist. For now it still leaves me stunned, because I have not expected it to be that good. Yes, the cover looks awesome... and the music follows this way!