Incantation - "Profane Nexus"

Now, I've always been seriously picky when it comes to Death Metal.  Like, INCREDIBLY picky.  But Incantation has always been a personal favorite of mine.  On their 1992 debut "Onward to Golgotha", I was instantly floored.  I think what really blew my mind was the doom metal influences as well as the almost groove metal slickness to it all.  The instrumentals were solid, the breakdowns were ridiculous, and overall this was just a really solid Death Metal album.   1994's "Mortal Throne of Nazarene" was equally as really solid.  However, I still really think that Incantation's strengths came in their more Doom Metal and Groove Metal influences.  Overall, I didn't really have too many complaints about this one.  From the blistering force of "The Ibex Moon" to the serious groove on "Essence Ablaze", this album was once again really solid.  As Incantation's career trudged on, I fell even more and love with their sound.  Their 1998 album "Diabolical Conquest" was my favorite of their work yet, bringing in a lot of the same sounds but multiplying it to outrageous new levels of power.   It was brutal, it was raw power, and it was also strangely catchy in parts.  So far, Incantation for me had a pretty solid career.  But with 2000's "The Infernal Storm", they started to lose me.  I feel like this album didn't play to their strengths at all.  There were no doom oriented passages, and most of this came off as painfully bland death metal.  So bland, that I can't really even remember anything about it except for its seriously ugly artwork.  Incantation's next album, "Blasphemy", certainly WAS an improvement.  Some of the more doom oriented tracks returned in the form of "Once Holy Throne", but without letting up on any of the thrash intensity with tracks like "His Weak Hand".  Overall, this wasn't my favorite Incantation album, but it showed them getting back on track.  "Decimate Christendom" however showed the band seriously back on track.  There were so many Over-The-Top, Explosive tracks on here like "Horns of Eradication" and "Feeble Existence", the sort of tracks that I loved to hear from Incantation.  Not only that.  But the album was pretty damn consistent, with only a few tracks failing to impress.   2006's "Primordial Domination" was pretty solid as well.  I wouldn't say there was anything new and flashy about this album, but it showed Incantation doing what they do best.  But then with 2012's "Vanquish In Vengeance", I honestly felt like Incantation once again took a big step back.  I really wasn't into the production on this album at all, and once again I feel like the band didn't play enough to their strengths.  To be honest, though, 2014's Dirges of Elysium" in many ways was exactly what I wanted to hear from Incantation.  This album had TONS of doom influenced and was patient and sludgy.  I just felt like overall, Incantation took their time with this album so much, and the results were seriously fantastic.  So I never really know if I'm gonna seriously dig an album from Incantation or not.  However, so far I've been really digging some of these new singles.  Let's talk about this new Incantation album!

This album starts off with “Muse”, and overall I really love this as an intro.  Mostly for one reason, the atmosphere.  The atmosphere on this track is seriously on point, and Incantation are really putting in the effort to make this as gigantic as possible.  As far as the instrumentals go, this is actually really impressive.  I honestly can’t remember the last time the band sounded so sonically in tact.  Their instrumentals on “Muse” seem to encompass everything, and even the production comes off really spot on.  Now, the vocals on this one aren't as prominent as I would have expected, but I really don’t mind it all that much.  It actually gives the listener some well needed time to take in some of these very sludgy, doom oriented instrumentals.  As far as an opening goes, I’m actually sort of obsessed with “Muse”.  This is the level of darkness that I can’t get enough of from Incantation, where it’s so in your face that it’s almost ridiculous.  For a band this far into their career, this is one hell of an explosive intro.  Up next, “Rites Of The Locust” is a whole lot more along the lines of what I expected to hear from an Incantation album.  This is light years more heavy and intense than the opening.  That being said, it sounds fantastic.  The solos are prominent, and the vocals are just as gruesome and as disgusting as you would expect them to be.  It’s a whole lot more in the realm of Death Metal, but it’s where they feel most comfortable.  “Rites of The Locust” is just so intense, with wave after wave of intense verses constantly bashing you in the face.  But I think what makes this come off just so great, is some of the seriously great chemistry between band members.  The combination of these vocals and the solos make everything much more explosive.  Overall, this is one hell of a tune.  Then we have “Visceral Hexahedron”, and let me tell you the doom metal is back in full force here.  This track is sluggish as hell, but to be honest it’s a little too sluggish for me.  I certainly dig the drums and all throughout.  But I’ve always sort of been more of a fan the way Incantation only would flirt with the idea of mixing in Doom Metal.  This track isn’t flirting, this IS Doom Metal.  But it’s almost completely uneventful Doom Metal.  Almost nothing happens here overall.  The vocals come off awkward among this atmosphere because of how very little is going on.  And when the rest of the instrumentals pop in around the 2-minute mark, I feel like Incantation are trying way too hard to make u for lost time.  Not to mention, the mixing on this one is seriously ugly.  Half the time when the instrumentals come in here I can barely hear the vocals.  Even the vocals sound out of place practically.  Overall, I really don’t know what happened on this one.  Thankfully, “The Horns Of Gefrin” is a whole lot more straightforward.  But once again, I’m really questioning what’s up with this production.  I’m always down for a muddy and dense metal album.  But this one just sounds sloppy.  I still dig this much more than the previous track, however, since the instrumentals sound just so much more in tact.  Also, the vocals once again are really not up to snuff.  Half the time on “The Horns of Gefrin”, I feel like the vocals are just a complete afterthought.  Thankfully, there are enough exciting instrumentals on this one to save this one a little.  But still, there’s a major disconnect.
    This album rolls on with “Incorporeal Despair”, and this one is basically everything I could ask to hear from with Incantations.  The vocals may be totally over the top and much more in your face, but I feel like overall the time they take building this one up with a murky atmosphere works so well for them.  Some of the backing instrumentals on this one we haven’t heard yet from Incantation, and it’s just something great to hear.  There are literally so many layers to this one, and I can’t get enough of the very sludgy atmosphere.  Now, this is far from a death metal tune.  “Incorporeal Despair” is much more patience testing and sluggish, and basically a Doom Metal tune.  But I honestly seriously dig it, it’s something different for the band and it works.  But for all of you Death Metal fans you’ll be happy to hear “Xipe Totec” up next.  This is the sort of wild, in your face track that I needed to wake me up honestly.  There’s elements of thrash metal here and tons and tons of winding death metal.  This is a FINE blast of power, but why the hell is this only a minute long?  This easily could have been fleshed out some more, and I would have loved to hear just how intense that was.  One track however that I don’t have a single bad thing to say about is “Lus Sepulcri”.  For lack of better words, this track in every way sounds like Incantation in their prime and at their most vicious.  The instrumentals are intense, and the vocals are unforgiving.  There isn’t anything fancy here, no journeys into other metal genres, just straight up Death Metal.  But it’s moments like this that Incantation comes off as their freshest sounding and most youthful.  And as far as the instrumentals go, this is easily the most blistering.  “Lus Sepulcri” is one HELL of a track.  Then we have tracks like “Stormgate Convulsions From The Thunderous Shores Of Infernal Realms Beyond The Grace Of God” which are totally new ground for Incantation.  This one dives deep into the world of Dark Ambient music, and holy hell does it ever work.  It’s not a Metal tune at all.   But for a track building a strong atmosphere to go off on in the remainder of the album, this track is a breath of fresh air.  This is literally almost Haxan Cloak level of darkness.  So for a metal interlude, “Stormgate Convulsions From The Thunderous Shores Of Infernal Realms Beyond The Grace Of God” is brilliant.
    “Messiah Nostrum” on the other hand, is a little bit too Doom Metal influenced for me.  I feel like that great atmosphere that was just built up was sort of thrown out completely for this one.  Some of the instrumentals are impressive and all, and the vocals are just fine.  But to be honest, this track is just so painfully “OK”.  Plus, I feel like this one was probably thrown together in about 5 minutes.  “Omens To The Altar Of Onyx” continues in the heavier realm of the album.  But thankfully, Incantation here find the perfect balance between heaviness and a strong atmosphere.  The doom metal influence on this one has such a dreary tone to it. The chugging guitars are explosive, the drums are intense, and the vocals are just as grizzly as you would expect.  At the end of the day, this is exactly what I want to hear from Incantation.  Sadly though, I can’t say the same about the finale here, “Ancients Arise”.  This one is clearly going back in the direction of a more slower, Doom oriented sound once again.  But to be honest, I feel like we’ve almost heard a little too much of this sound on here.  Especially in moments like this, where there is virtually nothing going on.  Which is fine by me, I usually love patience testing music, IF it goes somewhere.  “Ancients Arise” though, goes nowhere.  It honestly doesn’t even come off as an Incantation track, not even close.  It just ends up being lifeless, even when it picks up, and it sadly does nothing as a finale.

Rating: 7.3/10

Give A Listen To: "Muse", "Rites Of The Locust", "Lus Sepulcri", "Omens To The Altar Of Onyx"

Overall Thoughts:  There's a lot of great moments on this new Incantation album that show them seriously on their game for being this late in their career.  But there are also a handful of messy moments, most of these come in the form of Incantation trying to bring in Doom Metal into their sound a little too much.  However, there are also plenty of moments here where Incantation sound their most youthful in years.  It's decent.