CABAL
Everything Rots
Nuclear Blast Records
In the rust-clad labyrinth of gears and grime, Denmark's CABAL emerges from the smog with their latest sonic leviathan, Everything Rots. Released through Nuclear Blast Records, this mechanical monster, dripping with industrial dread, serves as the band's fourth full-length installment. Like a great iron engine barreling through fog and ruin, CABAL's newest offering promises devastation and mostly delivers.
The album sets the stage with "Become Nothing", a track steeped in menacing ambience. It creates the eerie sensation of waking in a dilapidated warehouse, hunted by unseen forces whispering dread into your bones. Short, deliberate, and chilling, it leads seamlessly into "Redemption Denied", where the brutality truly begins. This track is classic CABAL: heavy riffs punch like pistons, drums pound relentlessly like machinery in overdrive, and vocals scrape the air like rusty blades, ensuring listeners know exactly what awaits.
The title track, "Everything Rots", perfectly encapsulates the decaying, industrial theme of the album. Crunchy, groove-heavy riffs captivate, while the almost-sing-along chorus ensures its staying power. It's the memorable anthem you never knew you needed amidst the smoldering ruins of an industrial dystopia.
Yet, the album's undeniable highlight is "Still Cursed". This track emerges as the monstrous centerpiece, instantly grabbing attention with its devastatingly catchy riffs and the guttural excellence delivered by Aaron Matts of TEN56. Its midpoint breakdown is seismic, a calculated sonic punishment that shifts gears from aggression to absolute devastation, solidifying its place as a standout track.
CABAL's merciless onslaught doesn't stop there. "Hellhounds" checks every box a deathcore fan craves dual vocal styles clash masterfully, riffs roar like chainsaws, and breakdowns hit harder than industrial hammers. It's brutal, gripping, and built for maximum volume.
Then there's "End Times", the battle cry for the death and thrash metal aficionado within has been waiting for. From its opening riff to the unforgettable growled line, "Welcome to the end times, you son of a bitch", it demands immediate attention. Meticulously engineered chaos, this track is purpose-built to ignite pits and summon unhinged crowd responses at live shows, rightfully earning its spot among the album's elite tracks.
However, the album isn't without missteps. "Snake Tongues", despite its intriguing electronic experimentation, feels oddly out of place. It's reminiscent of a Vegas rave infiltrated by deathcore growls, undeniably catchy yet stylistically disconnected from the rest of the record. It would have made perfect sense as part of an experimental EP rather than this full-length narrative.
Likewise, "Stuck" embodies its title too accurately, offering nothing exceptional or notably engaging just an average, formulaic deathcore track placed as filler. It neither adds nor subtracts from the album's impact, easily overshadowed by the more compelling tracks surrounding it.
The closing bonus track, "Sort Sommer", featuring FABRÄK, also feels misplaced. While it delivers infectious grooves and deathcore-infused dance beats reminiscent of a rave-infused underground scene in Las Vegas, it breaks the carefully built aesthetic and atmosphere CABAL cultivated throughout the album. Though it might find its home elsewhere in CABAL's catalog, here, it disrupts the cohesive decay narrative the band has meticulously constructed.
Yet, despite these missteps, tracks like "Forever Marked" reinforce the depth of CABAL's storytelling abilities. The song evokes the raw horror of humanity's darkest moments, conjuring imagery fit for a steampunk gothic horror adaptation of Lord of the Flies. It resonates with a visceral understanding of the evil lurking within humanity, captured within an unforgiving, slow-burning musical canvas.
Finally, "Beneath Blackened Skies", featuring Alan Grnja from DISTANT, provides a strong entry point for new listeners into the realm of deathcore. Its accessible grooves, memorable hooks, and perfectly executed breakdown led by Alan's brutal proclamation, "We will all suffocate" deliver everything a newcomer could need to understand and appreciate the genre.
Final Verdict:
Everything Rots is a crushing, calculated journey through rust and ruin, though uneven pacing and an over-reliance on guest spots occasionally fragment the experience. While it falters slightly in cohesion, the album undeniably excels at its core mission: delivering brutal, visceral metal meant to be played loud enough to terrify pedestrians at traffic lights. It may not be flawless, but the tracks that hit do so with devastating impact, ensuring CABAL's place among deathcore's formidable forces.
3.5 Out Of 5.0
