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/:: Artist :: The Troops of Doom ::\
:: Album :: A Mass to the Grotesque ::
:: Year :: 2024 ::
:: __ _ _ __ ::
-:--\\-----------------------------------------------------------------//--:-
:: \ / ::
:: . Genre :: Death Metal Source :: CD . ::
:: Label :: Voice Music R.date :: 2024-07-03 ::
_::__ Cat.nr. :: VMCD383 S.date :: 2024-05-31 __::_
::// \\::
::/---------------------------------------------------------------------\::
:: ::
/: Encoder :: LAME 3.100 -V0 :\
..: Bitrate :: avg. 281kbps :..
. Quality :: 44.1 kHz/Joint Stereo .
. Size :: 104.45MB .
. .
https://thetroopsofdoom.bandcamp.com/
__ __ _ . : _ ____ _ _ ____ _ : . _ __ __
.\\\\------- : | ---\ /---------------------\ /--- | : -------////.
+/ -\------- | | ----\ tracklist /---- | | -------/- \+
/: . : : . :\
/:: ::\
:: 1. Solve et Coagula - Introduction 1:19 ::
:: 2. Chapels of the Unholy 3:21 ::
:: 3. Dawn of Mephisto 6:11 ::
:: 4. Denied Divinity 3:53 ::
:: 5. The Impostor King 4:14 ::
:: 6. Faithless Requiem 4:05 ::
:: 7. Psalm 7:8 - God of Bizarre 8:09 ::
:: 8. Terror Inheritance 3:16 ::
:: 9. The Grotesque 5:35 ::
:: 10. Blood Upon the Throne 3:33 ::
:: 11. Venomous Creed 5:36 ::
:: ::
:: ::
:: ------- ::
.. >> 49:12 ..
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/: . : : . :\
/:: ::\
:: ::
:: Make metal evil again. This was The Troops of Doom's 'motto' ::
:: for the promotion of their sophomore album, 'A Mass to the ::
:: Grotesque'. Being plastered on merch, posts and everything else ::
:: possible. Ever since having released ôThe Confessionalö all the ::
:: way back in September 2020, it was clear that Jairo Guedz, Alex ::
:: Kaffer, Marcelo Vasco and Alexandre Oliveira wanted to bring ::
:: back the beloved, tried and true formula of old school death ::
:: metal. 4 years later, they remain as hectic (and heretic) as ::
:: always, providing stellar content once again in their grotesque ::
:: mass. ::
:: ::
:: ôWith this album, we could experiment more with something not ::
:: so linked with the old Sepultura albumsà we werenÆt concerned ::
:: about it (sounding like Sepultura)ö ::
:: Jairo Guedz ::
:: ::
:: Compared to ôAntichrist Rebornö, the veteranÆs 2022 rookie ::
:: full-length, we see The Troops breaking out of their shell much ::
:: more, creating their own identity. While ôAntichristö still had ::
:: many aspects of the old Sepultura sound many fans wanted to ::
:: hear, ôA Mass to the Grotesqueö brings a much deeper final ::
:: product to the table, while still maintaining their 80s/early ::
:: 90s thrashy essence. Both singles û ôChapels of the Unholyö and ::
:: ôDawn of Mephistoö û illustrate this point perfectly, blending ::
:: tried and true breakneck tremolo riffs with more cadenced, ::
:: slower sections, while still keeping brutality at the ::
:: forefront. ::
:: ::
:: This grotesque mass also shows how the band is progressively ::
:: less afraid to experiment with new ideas, such as with the 8 ::
:: minute long (almost epic-like) ôPsalm 7 8 û God of Bizarreö and ::
:: the slower ôVenomous Creedö, which closes out the LP, showing ::
:: flashes of doom influence at times. In general, there is ::
:: something to be enjoyed by every type of extreme metal fan. It ::
:: goes without saying that the production is absolutely ::
:: impeccable, every single instrument, every single riff, every ::
:: single vocal line slots into the whole album perfectly, like a ::
:: glove. The guitar tones are incredibly brutal, clearly evoking ::
:: the raw energy and power of the 80s, but with the clarity of ::
:: modern production. Alexandre OliveiraÆs drums require no ::
:: comments; perfection. ::
:: ::
:: ôIt was a dream come true for me. You have Dan Seagrave doing ::
:: your artwork and the Morris brother, Jim and Tom Morris of ::
:: Morrissound Studiosà the cradle of death metalà ItÆs one of the ::
:: best things IÆve written in my life.ö ::
:: Jairo Guedz ::
:: ::
:: As the rest of the album, the cover once again shows how the ::
:: band is striving to create their own identity and break out of ::
:: their mold. The cover for 'A Mass to the Grotesque' marks the ::
:: first time in the band's history where the art is not drawn by ::
:: the excellent designer and guitarist Marcelo Vasco, as ::
:: according to Jairo, Marcelo wanted to see other artistÆs takes ::
:: on their art, their music. Dan Seagrave, absolute legend, goes ::
:: for a more cool cover, contrasting directly with the rest of ::
:: the band's red artwork. Also, the signature devil figure, which ::
:: has followed Guedz since his Sepultura days is no longer a ::
:: central figure, still being present, but being only a small ::
:: part of the amazing piece of art that is this cover. Just like ::
:: the sound itself, it definitely stands out among the sea of ::
:: death metal releases we have been seeing as of late. ::
:: ::
:: All in all, if it hasn't been made clear yet, The Troops of ::
:: Doom's sophomore album release, 'A Mass to the Grotesque' ::
:: undoubtedly stands as one of the best death/thrash releases of ::
:: 2024, and very possibly, of this decade. This future classic ::
:: evokes perfectly everything that was loved with early death ::
:: metal, but being able to enjoy all of the blessings that come ::
:: with modern technology. It would surprise few to see this ::
:: release being discussed as a classic in the future, and to see ::
:: The Troops headlining major festivals. The band may be young, ::
:: but all of the members are veterans of the tough brazilian ::
:: scene. Concluding, one can say that metal is û albeit slowly û ::
:: being made evil again, and there is no album that pushes this ::
:: agenda more than ôA Mass to the Grotesqueö. I leave you with ::
:: this reflection from Jairo Guedz, in his interview with Flavia ::
:: Andrade: ::
:: ::
:: 'We are the grotesque, we are being controlled (by politics, ::
:: religion)' ::
:: Jairo Guedz ::
:: ::
:: . _ _ . ::
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