Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 02/06/2007
For their fifth full-length album, Swedish
death metal collective
Impious went the conceptual route, building the songs around a protagonist intent on proving to the world that he is the true "servant of God." It's an all too common theme for the genre, and the blood and brutality that follow aren't nearly as shocking as they think they are, but what sets this vision apart from the myriad of others is the gorgeous 23-page comic book by Italian
horror artist
Andrea Cavaletto (take that, downloaders). It's like a storybook for evil grownups, and it makes listening to
Holy Murder Masquerade a lot more fun. Musically,
Impious specialize in pretty standard melodic
death metal (even when the band turns to
thrash for its inspiration, it never does so
atonally), but the production is tight, clean, and unforgiving, and the playing reliable and at times quite cathartic, especially on the crushing
"Bloodcraft" and the epic title cut.
Holy Murder Masquerade won't change the face of Swedish
metal, but it definitely knocks it around a bit.
~James Christopher Monger, All Music Guide
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