SIX FEET UNDER: Nightmares Of The Decomposed (DEATH METAL): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

For those who like to be reassured, find their habits and do not like change, Six Feet Under is the dream band. For more than 25 years, the Americans, led by the unfailing Chris Barnes, have been anchored in a brutal old school fat death metal. It worked at the beginning of their career, with "Haunted" and "Warpath" in particular, then everything quickly got out of hand. Barnes fell asleep and offered a number of mediocre records all the same, with highly dispensable cover albums in between.

And if recently he raised his head a little with "Torment", the result remains mediocre when we think back to the promises of the beginnings. For this 13th album, Six Feet Under welcomes in its ranks Jack Owen who thus finds Barnes with whom he played in Cannibal Corpse. The arrival of the guitarist recognized for his technical qualities leaves a little hope as for the quality of "Nightmare Of The Decomposed" and this hope lasts the time of the first title.

Heavy and fat, 'Amputator' is a good deposition, carried by Barnes' throaty vocals. The title has a good solo and, without being great, can be listened to. But it doesn't last and the record then begins an incredible descent into hell, with a series of mediocre, soulless and idealess tracks. From 'Zodiac' to 'Dead Girls Don't Scream', there is nothing to save. All this has been heard many times, the riffs are repetitive, Barnes seems bored on vocals and Owen is very discreet, swinging a solo here and there without getting tired. Even short, these titles achieve the feat of being boring, seeming never to end.

The only glimmer in this hell comes at the end of the album, as if to reward those who didn't crack and cut off listening. Without being great, 'Drink Blood, Get High' and 'Without Your Life' raise the level: more dynamic they wake the listener up with a quick good side. This newfound energy is good and allows the record to end with dignity in a death metal spirit that is almost representative of what Barnes and Owens did in the distant past.

But this is not enough to save "Nightmare Of The Decomposed". These titles can't make us forget the appalling mediocrity proposed by freewheeling musicians who hardly try to shine. With this opus Six Feet Under continues its slow decrepitude which seems never to have an end. - Official website

SIX FEET UNDER

NIGHTMARES OF THE DECOMPOSED

METAL BLADE RECORDS

DEATH METAL