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CRITICAL EXTRAVASATION
Order Of Decadence

Redefining Darkness (2022)
Rating: 7.5/10

Channelling the more technical aspects of Death and the likes is this Russian act who bring numerous angles, vocal dehydration and technicality on what is a very impressive debut full-length offering. Boasting distinctive cover artwork, Order Of Decadence is the work of vocalist Alexander Mokin, guitarist Sergey Stepanenko, bassist Victor Khaychenko and session drummer Vladimir Udarnov and together they have constructed a briskly complex album to be marvelled at.

You get 33 minutes of music here which is very much in the vein of latter day Death. Admittedly the drums are a bit weak but the album unravels with some nice little surprises, particular as to the inclusion of synth work and the bass is extremely prominent too as one would expect from a technical death metal opus that nods to the classic era of experimentation.

The vocal sneers and snaps of Alexander Mokin have that Chuck Schuldiner vibe circa The Sound Of Perseverance (1998), although there are times when they drift into slightly deeper snarls. However, it is the music which stands out here, never really resting on its laurels the tracks zip by on uneven waves of intricacy and yet lined with thrashier nuances. You get mid-tempo designs with the likes of ‘Feast On Dreams’ and the bass led mazes of ‘Devastating Virtue’, while opener ‘Waltz Of Hypocrisy’ and ‘Clotted Negligence’ boast extra vim.

Patterns do become familiar and it could be argued that through all the twists and turns you do know what’s coming as the album unravels, but the band has kept things concise and precise so that the levels of intrigue remain. This is a solid effort from Critical Extravasation and one which displays plenty of technical prowess, so let’s see how this beast evolves.

Neil Arnold

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