Embryonic Devourment

Fear of Reality Exceeds Fantasy

Deep Send Records 2008

The debut album from California's Embryonic Devourment is in a word, EXTREME!  Brutal, technical, and insanely fast.  Each song is a well crafted flurry of riffs, rapid drum fills, and deep guttural vocals.  Craniopagus Parasiticus twists and turns on a dime and utters constant guitar squeals while the drummer frantically hammers away like a rampant killing machine.  One thing that I find truly refreshing though is the fact these guys are able to keep the songwriting technical yet compose some truly catchy and memorable riffs, as is the case with Self Inflicted Cesarean.  This gives each song an identity rather than just becoming another in an endless stream of faceless time and tempo changes.  Repto Sanguine Analysis progresses with a slower double bass passage that brings to mind some Morbid Angel and their least rhythmic and there is a strong dose of bass guitar work which shines through the thick mayhem.  My favorite track is Blade Enforced Butchery which has a little more riff repetition throughout and gives Hate Eternal a run for its money with its blistering ferocity.  The album closes pretty much as it began with some more hyperfast death metal insanity in the form of Usurping the Secret Society.  The last two minutes of the song though veer off into left field with some primitive and wild tribal drumming.  I am not a huge fan of the snare drum sound on this album which is a shame since it plays such a prominent role within Embryonic Devourment.  If you are a fan of brutal yet technical death metal then Fear of Reality Exceeds Fantasy should be your dream come true.  It is engaging and brutal yet thought provoking in its masterful arrangements.