Deranged

The Redlight Murder Case

Regain Records 2008

Sweden's old school traditional death metallers, Deranged are pumping out another brutal assault.  As always they are drawing on American death metal rather than their Swedish brethren for stylistic inspiration.  The Redlight Murder Case, their seventh full length album, opens with what is arguably the best track on the album which combines straight-on death metal brutality with some catchy as hell riffing.  Strip Nude For Your Killer hacks away with cannibal corpse inspired meaty guitar work and then pauses for intensely grabbing guitar trilling towards the latter half of the song.  As a matter of fact, most of the album follows this sort of suit which is really straightforward, no-frills death metal and then some kick ass riffs are smattered and spattered throughout the blood-soaked carnage that is this album.  Overall this makes for standard death metal killing sprees occasionally marked by riffing brilliance.  If only the whole album could have been possessed of these catchy and jugular ripping songwriting rather than them being the exception to the rule.  One album highlight for me though is The Killer Wore Black Gloves.  Primarily an exercise in thick and muscular riffing the track also displays a depraved chugging axe violence that brings to mind Slayer stomping out some down-tempo double-bass violence.  The next track, Formula for a Murder references Slayer again but at a much faster pace making for possibly the most intense moments of the album.  I'd say Deranged's new album is a slightly above average listen but it certainly won't be among my favorites for the year.  The Redlight Murder Case represents a decent gore-soaked romp through the bowels of death metal.  Simple and effective.  Primitive and brutal!!!