Blood Oath

Suffocation | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 14, 2009)
• Original Release Date: 2009
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Nuclear Blast Americ
• ASIN: B0027OSSQK
• In-Print Editions: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #85,337 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

U.S. pressing of the seminal New York Death Metal band's 2009 album includes two bonus tracks. In the relatively short but intense history of Extreme Metal, Suffocation are unique for fusing the technical with the percussive and single-handedly redefining the genre. They also represent the future of Metal as they continue to redefine brutality and the meaning of extreme with each album they release. Suffocation are the pioneers of New York Brutal Death Metal, and Blood Oath is a testament to their longevity. Blood Oath has the privilege of not only being a distinctively brutal album by the band that has been at the pinnacle of the genre for 20 years, but also of perfectly capturing the simmering anger of these times. The timeliness of this sound and the viability of this band make 2009 Suffocation's time to reign

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Reminds you of all that elements that made you love Suffocation in the first place, July 15, 2009

By 

Zander Haberstaft (Miami, Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Blood Oath (Audio CD)

Marking their 20th anniversary of being around (formed in 1989), Suffocation manages to release their best product since "Despise the Sun". You gotta give 'em credit for sticking around after all these years, while many a cookie cutter death metal bands have come and gone (sometimes the problem is, they don't go away.) So when I got the CD and saw the sticker with the quote, "Best thing they've done in ten years" I was skeptical because how many times have you heard/seen that on the album packaging only to find out that it is far from true? "Blood Oath" is a brilliant exception.

After re-forming after the post-late-90s breakup, Suffocation's output has left a lot to be desired. "Souls to Deny" was a hackneyed, poorly put together album made for the sake of putting out an album. The self-titled album of 2006 signaled something different, it displayed the fact that the band is willing to toy with their style and try different things (sometimes to the chagrin of their fans.) Ultimately, the last half of the last album took the overall product down a notch.

Here we find the band that has found their groove and feels right at home in their song writing ability. Guy Marchais works well with the band as opposed to clashing with it in prior efforts. The dual guitars of Marchais and Hobbes are a treat to be sure, but the booster in the reformed band was obviously Derek Boyer. The guy is well worth his pay delivering some of the best bass lines heard in a death metal album ever. Mike Smith has always been a wild card in Suffocation (odd since he's the founding member), sometimes delivering good performances and sometimes sticking to a rigid Morbid Angel type of drumming. I have to say though, this is his best drumming. The double bass with the quarter time on the bell in the opening track, to the genius beats and changes on "Cataclysmic Purification" -it's all busy, different and blends the styles of the entire Suffocation portfolio together well. Frank of course delivers a convincing performance on vocals. He doesn't do some of the multilayered growls that were heard on the last albums. This time around he opts for a more low-mid-range-intelligible vocal approach (although to call anything Frank does "mid-range" is somewhat disingenuous.)

The albums vision favors the progressive song over the more linear death metal approach. Think more "Pierced from Within" than "Effigy" or "Human Waste". Still though, there are fast songs, slower mid-tempo songs, and songs that go all over the place.

I don't have any problems with this album. Production is well done, the sound of all the instruments sounds good together. Derek Boyer's bass sometimes sounds "twangy" which might bother some, but overall it's a very even mix heavy on the low end and somewhat mellow at the high end.

Easily as good minute for minute as "Despise the Sun" or "Pierced from Within" were when they came out.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Death Metal from the Legends, July 14, 2009

By 

Wayne A. Grimsey (New Zealand) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Blood Oath (Audio CD)

I have listened to this album a few times over the last view days, so here's my conclusion:

If you're looking for a fresh new death metal album to add to your collection, you can not go wrong here. The production is very crisp, though the excellent guitar playing could be a tad louder in the mix. Also, check out the track Dismal Dream; Derek Boyer's bass playing is amazing on here. Frank Mullen's vocal style seems to be a a bit deeper than what he applied on the band's self titled release. The tracks Blood Oath and Dismal Dream were the first tracks to grow on me. I also enjoy the doomy atmosphere of Cataclysmic Purification. There's also a new version of Marital Decimation from Breeding the Spawn. This continues the tradition of Suffocation releasing a new version of a song from that album on each of their subsequent full length releases. A great track in it's own right.

Overall, the pace of the music here is a little slower than prior releases. Yet, each track still contains a healthy thick slab of busy action that keeps me wanting to come back for more.

I gave this album a quite a few listens and nuances in the music became more apparent. The songs which didn't initially grow on me, have actually become more catchy now.

Well worth purchasing, if you enjoy a good thick solid slab of death metal.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars bleed for the oath!, July 24, 2009

By 

Donald Roberts (Melbourne, FL) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Blood Oath (Audio CD)

this album takes repeated listens before it finally gels, and even then it's not as memorable or accessible as their prior albums. For some reason, Blood Oath reminds me of Morbid Angel's Heretic album. There is obvious influence by Morbid Angel, Hate Eternal, even Immolation sprinkled throughout. The new sound is refreshing but ultimately comes off as an exhausting exercise in brutality devoid of any catchy chorus lines or outstanding riffs. Lyrically, this is probably Frank Mullen's weakest contribution to their discography but his voice has stayed true to form. All in all, a solid performance from the true titans of death metal that ultimately is overshadowed by its predecessor. Neither Obituary, Deicide or Cannibal Corpse could capture the magic of their prior albums; Suffocation is no different. Rather than rehashing their self-titled album, though, they've opted for a rawer, darker sound that harkens back to old-school Suffocation. This album will not propel them up the death metal hierarchy but it will still lay to waste the new generation of brutal wanna-be's.