By: Oz Okter
Graves of Valor
“Locusta” (mp3)
from “Salarian Gate”
(Relapse Records)
More On This Album
Genre: Metal : Death Metal
Release Date: 5/26/09
UPC: 781676703821
Territories: World
Rising out of South Carolina, Graves of Valor brings some of the finest American death metal I’ve heard from a new band in quite a while. Relapse doesn’t play around when it comes to quality metal and this is certainly no exception. I will admit I was a bit hesitant when I read that three members were formerly in Through the Eyes of the Dead, but my fears were put rapidly to rest. I’m sure that some will attempt to throw this into the metalcore camp, but I’m not falling for it. This is pure death metal; the kind that used to crawl out of Floridian swamps.
Thankfully, there is nary a clean vocal to be found on the album. No sing-a-long chorus, no tender verses. Growls and screams prevail throughout, but the real highlight is the instrumentation. And man can these lads shred. The dual technical guitar attack is tight, concise and even has space for the occasional face-melting solo. Don’t believe me? Check out the sweep bonanza on “Locusta.” The dual leads pair quite nicely with the double bass assault of Dayton Cantley.
Its not all about brutality however. On Salarian Gate there is plenty of melody hidden underneath the chaos. Towards the end of the album, we find a nice bit of contrast as the grind/pit tuner “The Clever Ape” blends into the acoustic interlude “Diderot,” before bleeding into the technical wizardry of “Locusta.” Relapse was awesome enough to let us pre-release “Locusta” to the masses. Listen to it here and grab it to go above.
Don’t miss Graves of Valor this summer, on tour with German technical death wizards Obscura and grind legends Brutal Truth. The Relapse contamination tour is coming to a town near you and you can’t hide.
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Tags: Graves of Valor, Pre-Release
