Customer Reviews

Retribution

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As a metal music fan for the past 18 years, I've seen my fair share of bands come and go. I've also seen my share of undeserving bands get notoriety and undue popularity. Malevolent Creation though, fall into a different category; bands that put every ounce of talent and energy they have and not reap well deserved acclaim. "Retribution", the band's 2nd cd, is absolutely one of the top 5 death metal albums ever produced.

What makes this record stand out above the rest of the heap is the absolutely murderous intentions exhibited. Playing with a ferocity and fire rarely achieved in the death metal genre, the Malevolent Ones go on a rampage of technically proficient, razor sharp death. Annihilating just doesn't do justice as a description.

Kicking things off with a reworking of the theme from "Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer", "Eve of the Apocalypse" opens and just shreds your ears. Prototypical Malevolent Creation, with plenty of stop and go riffage, unbelievably brutalizing drumming (from the now disappeared Alex Marquez) and, in my opinion, the best death metal vocalist I've heard, Brett Hoffman. Not only does Hoffman NOT do those annoying, gurgling vomit vocals (ie Cannibal Corpse, Suffocation), he gives a unique, individual and by all accounts, terrifying vocal performance. Listen to the shrieks, screams and howls on "The Coldest Survive", "Slaughter of Innocence", and "Mindlock". This is how a death metal vocalist should vocalize. Coupled together with the murderous compositions here,this makes for a seriously damaging listening.

I know I might have gone a bit far with the praise in this review, but for me, there will never be another band like prime time Malevolent Creation (forget the followup "Stillborn", as it is a horrible cd). In a field where immitation is not only commonplace, it is expected, this band stamped out their own identity and made an impact not felt since death metal reared its head as a genre. This might arguably be death metal's answer to "Reign In Blood". This is the one cd that at ANY cost, is absolutely worth every penny spent on it.

I'm honestly surprised by how few death metal fans are actually aware of Malevolent Creation. They are one of the best Death Metal bands out there and have existed since 1987. Any Malevolent Creation album with Brett Hoffman on vocals is the perfect place to start. There are few Death Metal bands that stand up to this guy. I like what reviewer Oddity said about this record, in that it is Brett's vocal and lyrical ability that bands like Cannibal Corpse, Deicide, Etc. lack in their music. Those guys probably sit and write the lyrics in five minutes and tend to grunt the words together. As a result, all their songs the same and you can't take it too seriously (seriousness is something I like in my music) and becomes boring. Where as the way Brett Hoffman growls and projects his voice and the way he write the songs, you can tell, or at least get the feel that he is dead serious about it and honestly sounds like he came from Hell (and I don't say that too often). Also the Drums, Bass and Guitar are excellent. Just check out my particularly favorite song titled Mindlock for proof. If you like Death Metal like Vader then this definitely for you.

An interesting thing about Malevolent Creation is that their lineup practically changes on every album, keeping them fresh. It's sad that Roadrunner decided to discontinue most of their Malevolent Creation albums. Get a copy of this as quickly as possible off eBay or something; you'll be glad you did. Hopefully they will re-release these but that doesn't look like it's gonna happen anytime soon. This is difficult to find but the search is worth it. It shreds, it pounds, it screams, it kills, it owns. Just hunt down a copy and you'll be one happy head banger.

Interesting Fact: This album was produced by Scott Burns, who also Produced Sepultura's Arise and Beneath the Remains. His great production shines on this record as well as those.

This is my favorite Malevolent Creation album as well as my favorite death metal album of all-time. I bought it on my 15th birthday along with The Ten Commandments and a Metallica cassette single of Wherever I May Roam all in the year 1992. I bought all 3 on cassette. Anyway, these were the times when I was first getting into death metal. It all started with this local radio station here in Florida called WSHE and their Sunday Night 12:00 AM program that consisted of only music by bands from Florida. They were playing a lot of death metal and they kept playing the song Eve Of The Apocalypse dozens of times. That song was the most scarriest, heaviest, brutal song that I ever heard in my life. It's scarred the hell out of me at first but it quickly grew on me. I was only new to death metal at the time but I really was hungry for the heaviest, most brutal kinds of metal possible. It was a slow process but it gained a whole lot of momentum. Than one day, Florida was striken by Harricane Andrew and I went through the aftermath. During these times, I kept turning into that same local show and awaiting for them to play Eve Of The Apocalypse. I even requested it but they didn't play it. Than, I spent some time trying to decide rather to buy the album or not but there came a point where I just couldn't take it anymore. So I went to the old Sound Wherehouse and brought this album and the other 3 items that I mentioned and they all ripped. I played the Metallica cassette single first. And than, I played this album and it blew me away. In other words, all hell broke loose.

Now for my review. This is the second album by the band as well as their second one on Roadrunner Records. This is the album that made me become a death metal fan and ever since its release, there hasn't been an album that could top its power. I mean this is an album that can destroy a whole city or cause a nuclear disaster of ignited radiation if played on a high leveled PA system. In other words, this is some really heavy, intense, extreme, all-out, powerful, assulting, intimidating, dominating, annihilating, punishing, unrelenting, uncompromising, apocalyptic, skull-crushing, brutal-as-hell, old school death metal officially created on endless truck loads of Stone Cold Steve Austin cans of whoop-a--. This is an album for fans of bands like Lamb Of God, Deathchains, Demented Ted, Hate Plow, Divine Empire, Nile, Brutality, Oppressor (Elements Of Corrosion), Resurrection (Embalmed Existence), Monstrosity (Imperial Doom and Millennium), Sinister (Cross The Styx, Diabolical Summoning and Savage Or Grace), Diabolic (Subterranial Magnitude) and an old Christian death metal band called Obliteration. Some of my favorite songs here are Eve Of The Apocalypse, Systematic Execution, Slaughter Of Innocence, Coronation Of Our Domain, No Flesh Shell Be Spared, Monster and Mindlock. WORDS OF WARNING: Before playing this album, make sure you're in an opened field with nothing around and have a costum-made body suite and helmet on because all hell is going to break loose. You've been warned.

I've always owned most Malevolent albums but I could never find this one in stores. I heard it was hailed as a death metal classic. I couldn't wait to hear it so i figured why not download it. Once I downloaded all the songs I took my first listen. I began to see why this was a classic instantly. The riffing (just like every malevolent creation album) is awesome. "Slaughter of Innonence" has one of the greatest headbanging riffs of all time in my opinion... just listen to the intro riff. I cannot stop listening to this album. Once it comes back on shelves, here in the states, i'll definately be sure to pick this up. Brilliant album all the way through. I can't name one bad song on this album. This is easily Hoffman's best work vocally. He is awesome and he was awesome on "Envenomed" and "The Fine Art of Murder" but this is his best work. Every metal fan, including non death metallers, should pick this classic up because the technicality, the vocals and just about everything else about this album are incredible. ENOUGH ENOUGH... JUST GET IT ALREADY!

after ROADRUNNER RECORDS realized that sales of MALEVOLENT CREATION'S first 3 records had reached their peak and tapered off, the now-big time label decided to discontinue them in the U.S.. fortunately, "RETRIBUTION", released in 1992 is not only offered here on amazon as an import, but the new MALEVOLENT-owned ARCTIC MUSIC GROUP label has imminent plans to re-release all 3 cd's including "RETRIBUTION"...and for good reason...the first thing that comes to mind when i listen to this record is HELL. the best word used to describe this record is also HELL. this meaty, chunky, technical and brutally executed recording is a pure masterpiece. recorded in their heyday, this cd is MALEVOLENT CREATION at their finest. the highlight of the LP is murder master brett hoffmans sick ability to get his point across without sounding forced, unlike the overrated and tired sounding bands deicide and cannibal corpse. hoffman, on this album, has the unique ability of making a tired subject such as murder sound so fresh and beautifully intelligent lyrically. vocally, he spews forth a display of anger so powerful that i started to believe that this guy would really actually kill someone if he felt like it. this guy was making glen benton of deicide look like strawberry shortcake. standout tracks: the whole damned record, with the exception of track 4 "coronation of our domain" which is a little slow and musically not as impressive. my personal faves are "slaughter of innocence" "eve of the apocalypse" and "monster". the writing and arrangments on this record are very unique for the band. the only real downside i can think of is scott burns' mix of the guitars, which are a tad to bottomy to make out the riffs sometimes. this record has also been criticized for having a lack of catchy hooks unlike their debut "THE TEN COMMANDMENTS"...i disagree...this album needs to be listened to over and over to fully appreciate it, like METALLICA's "master of puppets". order this now, or wait for the re-release with bonus tracks. a sick classic.

Most bands have the problem of maintaining their existing sound by the time their second album comes out. Few maintain that sound and expand and craft their sound to make the final product even better. MC's second effort finds them with new drummer Alex Marquez and new second guitarist Rob Barrett. Unlike "The Ten Commandments", which was a solid debut effort, "Retribution" finds the group in a groove where they hash out well written songs one after another.

The guitar lines via Fasciana and Barrett are slightly more intricate than "commandments" and executed with razor sharp precision. The bass a la Jason Blachowicz (whoa, check out "Slaughter of Innocence") is much improved from "Commandments" where the bass was audible but lacked standout lines. Hoffmann's voice is just about the same and as possessed as ever. Marquez's drumming is a step up from Simpson's (who was decent) because he just maintains so much groove and plays off-track and then returns just as quick (see "No Flesh Shall be Spared" and "Monster"). He makes use of space and isn't flashy but does do some levels of drumming that are harder to replicate than most death metal drummers because he starts and stops at varying speeds and interchanges parts without any cue. The overall song writing here is much more solid, intricate and intense than "Commandments".

Too bad for MC they would have more line-up changes than Spinal Tap so the fury captured here didn't last too long. As a bonus, James Murphy (ex-Death, Obituary, Cancer, Testament) throws in a solo at the end of "Coronation". What more could you ask for?

...that such an album like this just had to have production ceased. Malevolent Creation is a band that has remained active for years and is still going strong. The band's 2nd album, "Retribution", is a classic death metal released in the year of 1992, and it is definitely their strongest point in their career. The music is rather reminscent to bands such as Morbid Angel and Suffocation, as the band like to throw in quite a mixture in there. Whether it would be a thrashy moment like "Eve of the Apocalypse" or "Slaughter of Innocence" to a slower break like in "Coronation Of Our Domination", or even the Death reminscent "The Coldest Survive", MC can deliver it excellent. Brett Hoffman is a vocalist that I can describe as unique. He reminds me of Chuck Schuldiner, but with a lower pitch, and out of all the vocalists MC had, I prefer him, as he IS original. Jason Blachowicz is such an excellent and underrated bassist; he could easily be in league with Steve Digorgio (Sadus, Human era Death) and Alex Webster (Cannibal Corpse). Drumming by Alex Marquez is fantastic. Phil and Rob do excellent at riffs and solos. Overall, the math comes to an excellent sophomore effort.

My summary: If you love vintage death metal that originated from the East Coast, by all means do not hesitate to get this album. You might have to download it, as it is out of print, but it'll be great nonetheless. Make sure to also check out The Ten Commandments by this band as well.

...by way of Buffalo, NY. I assume after Cannibal Corpse skipped town to Florida and had some success, the same type of move must have made sense to the guys in Malevolent Creation. This is their second album, and one of their better ones, a crushing old-school death metal assault that never lets up for its 35 minute run time. Speaking of Cannibal Corpse, Rob Barrett, one of their future guitarists, was in Malevolent Creation at the time and left some riffs and solos right here. Good ones, too. Alex Marquez is an excellent drummer, he fleshes out this album a bit more with his skillful playing than Mark Simpson did on "The Ten Commandments." Brett Hoffman's vocals are a treat also...he doesn't grunt or go low, he has an angry psychotic midrange that sounds like he's ten feet tall and gargles broken glass. Totally bad-azz, in other words. There is also a sizable amount of thrash metal in Malevolent's albums, and "Retribution" is no exception to that rule. Great tracks on here are: "Coronation of Our Domain," "Slaughter of Innocence," and the crushing final song--"Iced." Recommended purchase if you can find it at a decent price.

Retribution is an excellent example of brutal death metal played with skill and overflowing with riffs. It still has some of the thrash flavor of their debut, The Ten Commandments, but Malevolent turns up the death metal assault here with plenty of blast beats, more aggressive vocals, and more grinding riffs. My personal favorite tracks are Slaughter of Innocence, Coronation of Our Domain, and Mindlock, three songs that just seem to raise the bar on brutality and catchiness at the same time. The rest of the album is far from filler. A lot of fans consider this their best release, and I have to say that it's at least tied for their best on my list. It definitely has some of the classic moments for which the band is most remembered. It's out of print and not the easiest cd to find a good deal on, so if you're a fan without one, you might want to grab a copy if you see one pop up at a decent price.

This is the only Malevolent Creation album I have (which is a bit weird for someone who has been listening to death metal for more than 10 years). This is one of those albums that when I first heard it I was instantly amazed (ever since I heard the intro the first time). Amazing album. To describe it in a few words I would say brutal, energetic and persistant. Definetely not melodic, this is brutality at its best.
If you have ever heard SOLSTICE you will know what I'm talking about. It is insanely brutal and persistant. The songs on this disc are not very catchy (there may be a few choruses you will never forget like "WORLDS COLLIDE" and "NO FLESH SHALL BE SPARED" but still not catchy). If you like Suffocation and Solstice you will dig this.