Incantation – Vanquish in Vengeance
Incantation… the churning storm of genre defining death metal has returned once again with album #9. With 20+ years of inspired productivity and a revolving kill floor of musicians behind him, founding member John McEntee is a machine of unstoppable riff smithing and possesses a never say die commitment to this band. Through all the frustrating member changes and surviving an era where the metal community seemingly went crazy for all things black metal, Incantation’s ideals, work ethic and most importantly “sound”, remain pure and true to their legacy.
Vanquished in Vengeance is yet another well crafted strike at christian dogma with its light cursing aggression (“Invoked Infinity”) and tendency to dip down into the death doom laden abyss ala Autopsy as found on the crawling and agonized “Transcend into Absolute Dissolution”. Boiling false harmonic bends gouge a feeling of unease while powerful riffs and the ever solid drum work of longtime skins man Kyle Severn conjures a foundation that is undeniably Incantation. His drum work has really become an important part of this bands formula, for he has a distinct style that knowingly flows between simplicity and more colorful flourishes when the songs call for it. For this album, John has enlisted the talents of guitarist Alex Bouks (Goreaphobia) and bassist Chuck Sherwood (Bloodstorm) who have fit right in to the Incantation framework, keeping this band vital and ready for the live arena. Vanquish in Vengeance feels like another solid addition to this bands ever impressive catalog, even though it just can’t compete with Incantation’s musical output from Onward to Golgotha through the ever amazing Diabolical Conquest. Having said that, the one weak link that cannot be overlooked without a mention, is John’s vocals. Aesthetically it makes sense for him to sing, for it’s never easy to find the right vocalist, but ever since he has tried his hand at brutal vocals, it has sounded like a register that has been tough for him to fully fall into. Lets face it, both Craig Pillard and Daniel Corchado really put their own uniquely sick and evil vocal blasphemies all over this band and are tough shoes to fill. John get’s the job done and is getting better which is the point/a good thing, but he lacks the character and effortless disgust upheaved by the aforementioned artists. Sometimes this is a distraction for me that lasts for several songs, but once I get used to the delivery, I tend to let it go and let the music and the full push of this bands tone/style be the guide.
If you’ve never been into Incantation, Vanquished in Vengeance isn’t going to win you over to the realm of the goat, but it does display a fine cross section of songs where death and doom unite with unholy lust. Incantation are indeed an institution and can still construct material that I care about and look forward to listening to. Well done John! -Marty
Listenable Records
Worm Gear 
[…] Honorable mentions: Horrendous – The Chills (Dark Descent) My dying bride – A Map of all our Failures (Peaceville) Desolate Shrine – The Sanctum of Human Darkness (Dark Descent) Incantation – Vanquish In Vengeance […]