Arsis – Lepers Caress
Scion A/V, 2012
9/10
It seems forever
since Starve For The Devil came out
in 2010, and the usual delays and personnel changes have ensued during the
intervening time. The timing of this release is a bit odd, only four months or
so before the new album, Unwelcome,
is released on April 30. Who’s to complain, though, as this EP delivers six
songs, only one of which will appear on Unwelcome
(“Carve My Cross”). Whereas Starve For
The Devil suggested a move towards straight-forward thrash, Lepers Caress signals that Arsis is
instead sticking with their trademark, technical thrash-inspired death metal
sound. “Haunted, Fragile, and Frozen” is an instrumental that leads off the EP,
building up from an acoustic start into a slow, epic riff that blasts into the
fast “Six Coffins Wide”. It doesn’t let up from there, with a brutal machine
gun snare and wicked double-bass drumming underlying fast, technical guitar
riffs and solos. If these are the leftovers from the writing sessions for Unwelcome, then the new album should be
a monster. The constant turnover in the band would usually be a cause for
concern, but Lepers Caress is a fine
reminder that Arsis is still at the top of their game. Best of all, you can
download this EP for free from the Scion A/V website.
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