Initially formed in the late 90s as a Swedish death metal supergroup, Bloodbath have since devolved into more or less an all-star death metal collective, similar to Sunstorm within the AOR realm. The lineup varies, but at the end of the day you know you’re getting a collection of ripping death metal with no influences past ’93. Pig squeals? Gravity blasts? Hardcore chug riffs? Look elsewhere. These guys genuflect at the altar of Entombed and Dismember. The same can be said for any number of recent US death metal bands, but they key difference is these guys came up alongside Entombed and Dismember.
Now while I’ve always considered myself to be a fan of Bloodbath, even going so far to rank 2004’s Nightmares Made Flesh as one of the Top 10 Swedish Death Metal Albums of all time, I must say that I was a bit underwhelmed by their last outing, The Arrow of Satan is Drawn (2018). It was alright, and certainly could’ve been a hell of a lot worse. Dare I say it was a tad generic? Yes, I do, especially taking the band’s capabilities into consideration. With that in mind, I went into their latest album, Survival of the Sickest, hoping for the best, but preparing for the, not worst, but mediocre.
Thankfully, Bloodbath has gotten back into the groove of things with what may be their strongest outing since the 2000s. Survival of the Sickest keeps things honest and old school; seamlessly melding influences both Swedish and US. The band wastes no time opening things off with a festering death-thrasher in “Zombie Inferno”, whose riffs and spirit channel that of Scream Bloody Gore era Death. Between this, the bloodthirsty “Malignant Maggot Therapy”, and the ferocious “Tales of Melting Flesh”, I can’t help but wish for a full speed ahead Bloodbath album. However, as the old saying goes, variety is the spice of life.
For every blistering neck snapper, there’s an ignorant groove-driven anthem like “Carved”, “To Die”, and “Addiction of Extinction”. The riffing tends to get a bit derivative on these songs in particular, but I’m sure those slamming it up in the pit would hardly notice. There’s also some horrific glimpses into the abyss with “Dead Parade” and “Environcide”, the latter of whose hopelessness and dread may turn off those of a gorier disposition. But nothing can prepare one for the doom and gloom of the album’s closing cut, “No God Before Me”. This miserable slab of funeral-death is more characteristic of singer Nick Holmes’ main band, Paradise Lost, circa 1991. I can hear hisses of rejoice from the Peaceville death-goth crowd after typing that last sentence!
Survival of the Sickest is by no means the best death metal album you’ll hear this year, or even the sickest for that matter. It is, however, the sound of death metal royalty reclaiming their throne. Naysayers be damned; Bloodbath is still sick and still surviving! I look forward to hearing what this new decade has in store for the veteran supergroup, even if the lineup is somewhat different by the next album cycle. Consider the comment section of this review a forum to start hedging bets on who will be the next member of Bloodbath.
7 out of 10
Label: Napalm Records
Genre: Death Metal
For fans of: Entombed, Dismember, Morbid Angel