Kev Rowland One thing one notices immediately with this album is the depth and power of the production, which is not at all surprising when one reads the small print and realised that none other than the mighty Colin Richardson has been coaxed into his first death metal album since his retirement. It is hard to believe that this is the fourteenth album from the French-Canadian melodic death metal outfit, and with an incredibly stable line-up (although it has to be noted that since this recording, drummer Oli Beaudoin has left the band to be replaced by James Payne). With two members having been there since the beginning some 30 years ago, in Maurizio Iacono (vocals) and JF Dagenais (guitars), plus bassist Stéphane Barbe has been there for more than 20, there is no wonder that they have focus and know what they want to achieve.

“It’s so aggressive yet at the same time, easy to listen to,” describes Dagenais, and this comes home with the opening number, which apparently was also put out as a single, “The Killshot”. It is massively aggressive, with plenty of downtuned ferocity, yet is amazingly catchy, and this coming together of the two quite different avenues results in something which is deep, dramatic, and intensely powerful. It has been quite a while since I last heard anything from these guys, and the last album I reviewed was 2013’s ‘Waiting For The End To Come’ and they have released two more in between these, and it appears I have been missing out as this is a fun ride from beginning to end. They have long past got past the point of having to prove themselves to anyone, and instead are out to have a blast, and that is exactly what they are doing.

This album does show that they are still continuing to push themselves, with Dagenais saying, “From the ground up, the first demos to the final thing, I didn’t want to have any regrets with this. I wanted to make sure there was nothing left behind, unfinished, no mistakes.” He even employed a 7-string guitar on the album for the very first time, providing that additional element which comes from hitting the chords in a different manner and having additional range. Powerful, and intensely impressive, this is a goodie. 

voila_la_scorie A friend of mine is fond of a music application with which you select an artist and a song by that artist gets played, and then after that other songs by musically related artists will play. By example, he entered Amon Amarth and then began skipping through song after song, just to show me which bands the application was pulling up. One band that caught my attention was Kataklysm. A week later, I recalled seeing something in a Japanese metal magazine about extreme metal bands from Montreal and I decided to do a search for such bands. Of course, Kataklysm was one of the top bands to crop up in the search, and I recognized the name from my friend’s app. Two weeks later and without preview (or pre-listen), “Waiting for the End to Come” was in my hands.

The album arrived along with several others as part of my delving into the death metal sub-genre, which I had previously experienced only through Opeth and Gorguts. As I listened to all my new acquisitions and then repeated the exercise, I found “Waiting for the End to Come” was catching my ears. “Like Animals” and “The Promise” had some excellent heavy riffs, “Under Lawless Skies” and “The Darkest Days of Slumber” sounded surprisingly melodic in spite of the roaring, guttural vocals, and several other songs had aspects that drew my attention. Within a week I ordered a second Kataklysm album!

Two other albums I brought home in the first batch were Amon Amarth’s “Twilight of the Thunder God” and Bolt Thrower’s “Those Once Loyal”. In comparison, I felt Kataklysm’s album was the most engaging. Admittedly, there is a kind of generic feeling to the songs of the album when considered together; there is little variety if any in the style of the music. Songs tend to be brutal and angry (“If I Was God… I’d Burn It All”, “Kill the Elite”, “Empire of Dirt”) and often include melodic parts. There are two vocal styles present: the aforementioned death growl and one of those throat-shredding screams. Kataklysm originally made themselves known for their “Northern hyper-blast” drumming style, but I think somewhere along the way when they went from death metal to melodic death metal, that drumming style became reserved as a technique for certain parts in certain songs. (Indeed, I hear more blast beats on my second purchase, the slightly older “Prevail”).

I actually read a few reviews of this album on another metal site and the remarks were interesting. Many people said that in recent years, Kataklysm’s albums had become repetitive. Their once fresh melodic death metal sound was not coming up with anything new. However, a least a couple of reviews stated that this album, while not bringing anything new to the table, was at least a revived and reinvented take on the band’s style, and all reviews gave this album favourable ratings. So this strikes me as a good entry album into the band. Out of curiosity, I listened a little to a couple of their older songs and the style is quite different, being closer to fellow Montrealers, Cryptopsy.

I don’t think it will be imperative to get a bunch of recent Kataklysm albums but this album has encouraged me to check out more of the band’s catalogue. A melodic death metal album worth checking out.

UMUR "Waiting for the End to Come" is the 11th full-length studio album by Canadian death metal act Kataklysm. The album was released through Nuclear Blast Records in October 2013. Kataklysm worked with session drummer Olivier Beaudoin (who has later been added permanently to the lineup) as Max Duhamel is again out of the band. The rest of the lineup consists of Maurizio Iacono (Vocals), Jean-François Dagenais (Guitars) and Stéphane Barbe (Bass). It´s been 3 years since the release of "Heaven's Venom (2010)", but the members of Kataklysm have kept busy with (among other things) their side-project Ex Deo. Having been active since the early nineties, consistently releasing albums, Kataklysm are widely considered as one of the most prolific Canadian death metal acts on the scene.

Stylistically "Waiting for the End to Come" pretty much continues the techncially well played death metal style with melodic elements that the band have now played for many years (and on many releases). These guys know their craft to perfection. The songwriting is solid (and occasionally excellent), the musicianship are on a high level and the sound production is professional, clear and powerful. The tracks are all between 3 and 5 minutes long and never outstay their welcome. They are to the point and and don´t feature too many excursions into unknown territories. The high pitched sneering vocals on "under Lawless Skies" stick out a bit, but that´s about it. The occasional use of mid-paced groove based riffing (which remind me of artists like Chimaira or Fear Factory) provide the music with a contemporary sounding element. That´s just a stylistic element though and we´re still treated to blast beats and other fast-paced drumming styles, growling vocals, and a satisfactory level of brutality as usual, so don´t despair if the word "groove" made you shiver with fear.

"Waiting for the End to Come" is not an album that sticks out in Kataklysm´s by now huge discography, but it´s a damn solid death metal release, featuring stylistic variation and sophisticated songwriting, a professional and well sounding production and high level musicianship. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

Kev Rowland From their debut album back in 1995, right through until today, these Canucks have managed to create quite a name for themselves, although many feel that the last 10 years or so aren’t all that they might have been. They are famed for describing their music as ‘Northern Hyperblast’, and in their early year were seen as a fairly chaotic outfit who pursued sheer speed over everything else. These days they still have plenty of speed, but have morphed into something that is melodic yet brutal, powerful and essential, and somehow bringing a feel of Swedish metal into it as well. The more I have played this album the more I have enjoyed it as this hits again and again. The blastbeats are still there, and given how important the drumming is to this album I was surprised to see that ex-Neuraxis drummer Oli Beaudoin has been brought in just as a guest as he is key to the overall sound.

This is melodic death metal as it should be played, with a band firing on all cylinders and creating an incredible metallic monster that takes no prisoners. The fact that this album hit the charts in multiple countries on its’ release shows that I’m not the only metalhead that thinks so.

Conor Fynes 'Heaven's Venom' - Kataklysm (6/10)

Sometimes, a state of mild ambivalence says alot unto its own. Kataklysm are a band to have released some great death metal in the past, with most looking to their classic "Sorcery" as their crowning achievement. Since the nineties however, Kataklysm don't seem to have aged well. Although 2008's "Prevail" seems to have received some accolades from fans, I'm usually left wanting something more convincing out of death metal. "Heaven's Venom" is- in many ways- a demonstration of why I might feel this way about them. Despite the evident skill Kataklysm has earned over the years, the band's tenth album is stuck in an awkward place between heavy groove and melodic death metal. This failure to specialize leads "Heaven's Venom" to be neither terribly heavy or catchy, leaving a moderately enjoyable experience that only partially satisfies.

It may have been unfair to say at first, but I remember telling someone after my first listen that Kataklysm's latest felt like 'elevator death metal.' This was meant in no way to discredit the band's skill as an act, or even to say they're particularly tedious. Where Kataklysm comes up empty is that they lack the sort of ferocity that I look for in most varieties of death metal. Not including melodic death metal (where beauty arguably stands most tall), I expect the genre to grab me by the throat and toss me off a cliff, or whatever musical equivalent that may entail. "Heaven's Venom" may have the ingredients to do that, but it keeps restrained throughout.

Perhaps my overbearing criticism lies in the fact that I first approached it with the expectation of death metal. It's irritating modesty aside, Kataklysm have brought a decent set of songs to the table. "Determined (Vows of Vengeance)" is a great song rooted within the Swedish Gothenburg style- a memorable chorus and melodic lead demonstrates a greater stylistic focus. The album's highlight comes at the end; "Blind Saviour" is an incredible track that finally nails what the rest of the album had beaten around the bush. It may end a little abruptly, but the melodic hooks and tense riffing feels like "Heaven's Venom" finally works its blended formula to its advantage.

There is nothing wrong with blending stylistic doctrines together- that's often how distinctive sounds and band trademarks are formed. In the case of "Heaven's Venom" however, I'm left feeling that this was a potentially great melodeath record that couldn't figure out what it wanted until it was too late. In the end, it is the strong musicianship to carry the album through. The drumming of Max Dahamel fits the band's style perfectly, and Maurizio Iacono packs a good deal of emotion into his growling. Don't get me wrong; it is an enjoyable album, but I don't think "Heaven's Venom" will be recalled with the same respect as their early work when all is done.